


Of Pleasure and Pain

by Star55



Series: Shades of Pink (Crazy in Love) [17]
Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Alcohol, Anal Play, Anal Sex, Angst, BDSM, Bad Parenting, Bondage, Butt Plugs, Dom Louis, Dom/sub, F/F, Gags, Girl Direction, Hair-pulling, Implied/Referenced Homophobia, Lesbian Sex, Mile High Club, Oral Sex, Orgasm Denial, Pain Kink, Praise Kink, Rough Sex, Semi-Public Sex, Sex Toys, Sexism, Slurs, Spanking, Sub Harry, Tattoos, Tribbing, Vaginal Fingering, Vaginal Sex, slight exhibitionism, sub space
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-25
Updated: 2019-02-17
Packaged: 2019-09-26 20:53:03
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 101,429
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17148917
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Star55/pseuds/Star55
Summary: Fiancée.Harry still isn’t used to that yet.The word still makes her stomach swoop pleasantly, and makes her heart sing happily in her chest. She has known for a long time now that she was going to marry Louis, but it’s so different actuallybeingengaged.A shades of Pink story where Louis and Harry go on their engagement-moon.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> *slides into ao3 like it hasn't been forever and leaves this first chapter here*
> 
> Massive thank you to my incredible beta, Jada. Thank you for your never ending patience and kindness. It means the world to me. ♥
> 
> Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays, everyone.  
> ♥

~*~  
_Harry_

Two weeks.

In two weeks’ time, Harry is going to be living with Louis. For the rest of their lives. With her _fiancée_. She knew that two more weeks at home with her mum, Robin, and the cats wasn’t long, but Harry is more than eager to start this new chapter of her life. With her fiancée.

_Fiancée._

She still isn’t used to that yet. 

The word still makes her stomach swoop pleasantly, and makes her heart sing happily in her chest. She has known for a long time now that she was going to marry Louis, but it’s so different actually _being_ engaged. 

First of which is that she’s still living at home with her mum for the next two weeks. That was Anne’s one request – for Harry to stay at home just for a few more weeks so they could spend some time together before Harry and Louis jet off across Europe for a well-deserved holiday. 

The days since school ended have been both far too long and too quick all at once. Harry wants to spend as much time as she can with all of the people in her life before they all go off and do different things, but it’s proving to be difficult. 

Niall and Zayn will be leaving for their holiday sooner than Harry would like, but she knows they deserve it after their schooling year. All three of them deserve the holidays they have planned. Harry just has to wait a few weeks longer before she can go on hers, is all.

“We should get matching tattoos,” Zayn says, nudging her foot into the back of Harry’s calf. Harry wriggles away from her prodding but finds herself nodding.

“Nah, I don’t want a tattoo,” Niall replies, sliding her hand down the front of Zayn’s loose top and just cupping her breast like it’s the most natural thing in the world. Harry has the weirdest friends. She loves them a ridiculous amount.

“I’m going to miss you both _so_ much,” she says, moving on her bed to get closer to them both. She lays herself across both of them, uncaring at the noises of protest they’re both making. She grins and turns to face them. 

“We’ll only be away a few months, Haz,” Niall says. “And you’ll be shagging your way across Europe with Louis for the entire summer, so it’s not like you’ll miss us.”

“Lies,” Harry replies, shifting so she’s between her two best friends. “I’ll miss you both a _lot_.”

Zayn moves, her feet pressing against Harry’s own. “We should meet up somewhere. Maybe Amsterdam?” 

“I’ll tell Louis, she’ll make it happen,” Harry agrees with a vigorous nod. “That’d be so awesome, though, to meet up with you both while we’re travelling.”

“Hell yeah it will,” Niall says. She wraps her arms around Harry and Zayn shifts closer, effectively creating a Harry-sandwich. “I can’t wait to just lie in the sun and swim at a beach that doesn’t have bloody pebbles instead of sand.”

Zayn snorts indelicately. “Good thing we’ve got two weeks in Spain then.”

Niall sighs dreamily. “I can’t wait.”

They stay like that for a while longer, just chatting and seeking comfort in each other’s arms. Harry knows that she’s going to miss both of them, even if she’s also going to be travelling during the summer. They’re her best friends. The very best friends she’s ever had. And she loves them a lot. 

“We need to have a date night before you go,” Harry says when there’s a lull in the conversation. “Just the three of us. Yeah?”

“Yeah, Haz,” Zayn says softly. Her lips touch Harry’s bare shoulder and Harry smiles. “We should make a whole day of it.”

Niall pulls out her phone and starts tapping away on the screen. “Let’s go play mini golf and have lunch before a movie and some shopping? I need both of you to help me pick out some bikinis.”

“Sounds good to me,” Harry says. “What about Thursday? Are you both free?”

“I’ve got to watch Safaa’s school play, but that’s in the morning. So after that?” Zayn replies.

“We should all go!” Harry exclaims. “She’ll love if we all went!”

Niall nods her agreement. “She would. We can take her flowers.”

Harry pulls her own phone out and unlocks the screen. “I’ll place an order right now.”

They all shuffle onto their backs to tap away at the screens of their phones, making comments to each other about where they should play mini golf that was close to somewhere they could get a good lunch from.

By the time Anne gets home from work, they’ve got a solid plan in place, which Harry is grateful for.

“Are you girls staying for dinner?” Anne asks, popping her head into Harry’s room. 

“If you’re cooking, Anne, I’m staying,” Niall replies with a grin. 

“I think I can manage to make something,” Anne says, giving Niall a smile of her own. “Any preferences?”

“Tacos?” Niall asks. Both Zayn and Harry nod their agreement. 

“Tacos it is. I’ll call when dinner is ready.”

“Thanks, Mum!” Harry calls after her. 

“I love your mum so much,” Niall says.

“We know,” Zayn and Harry say in sync, sharing a knowing grin between them. 

Ever since Niall was younger, she’s had a crush on Anne. It was cute when they were thirteen, and a little awkward when they were fourteen. Now Niall just admires Anne a lot, which is what Harry’s mum deserves.

“Have I shown you this video of Willow?” Harry asks, scrolling through her phone. She loads the video and hits play, letting her beautiful goddaughter’s face fill the screen. It’s something that makes Harry smile every time she sees it. She had managed to get Willow smiling at the stupid faces she was pulling at her. Every single time she missed Willow, she pulled that video out.

“She’s grown so much!” Niall exclaims, taking the phone from Harry to replay the video. “I can’t believe it.” 

“She looks so much like Liam,” Zayn comments when Niall passes her the phone. “She’s got the crinkly eyes that Li does.”

“She’s the most beautiful baby in the whole world,” Harry breathes, her heart feeling ten times bigger in her chest just watching the video with her friends. She doesn’t know how she’s going to survive three months on holiday without seeing Willow. “I love her so much. It’s ridiculous.”

Niall laughs and pats Harry on the forehead. “I can’t wait to see you with kids of your own. They’re going to walk all over you.”

Harry grins, not denying it. “I can’t wait to be a mum,” she says. “Did I tell you that Louis got me a Moonbump a while back?”

“A what?” Zayn asks, her brow furrowing in confusion. 

Harry takes her phone back and scrolls through the camera roll until she settles on the photo of herself with the Moonbump on. She bites her lip, hesitating. In a quick decision, she gets up off her bed and quickly shuts the door firmly before climbing back up on her bed, sitting facing her friends. 

“This might get a little sexy,” she warns.

Niall perks up, smiling. “Tell me _everything_!” 

Harry glances to Zayn, who just nods, and she turns the phone to face them so they can both see Harry in all of her fake-pregnant glory. 

After their amazing night of sex featuring that very item and role-playing that Harry was pregnant, Louis had surprised her saying that she wanted to get some photos of Harry with the bump. It had thrilled Harry to no end that Louis was as into the scene they were doing as she was. 

They had set up the spare room with a black backdrop and Louis had taken a bunch of photos of Harry wearing the Moonbump. In every single photo, she looks realistically pregnant. Harry swears that she was _glowing_ the entire time because she was that happy. The photos were for her and Louis only. It was something that Harry still thinks of with fondness, that Louis was willing to go to such lengths for her, and with her. It’s one of Harry’s favourite scenes they’ve ever done. 

She tells Niall and Zayn of coming home to find the bump and how Louis had been such a doting lover. They listen with rapt attention as she tells them of the photoshoot and the incredible sex they’d had each time with Harry wearing the bump. 

As she speaks, Harry feels her pulse spiking, remembering the way Louis had looked at her and how she’d felt with Louis taking such good care of her. It’s something that she definitely wants to do again in the future. 

“I swear you’re even kinkier than before Christmas,” Niall says as she hands Harry back her phone. “Like you’re _so_ kinky!”

Harry flushes, unsure if Niall is complimenting her or mocking her.

“I’m glad she treats you right,” Zayn comments, levelling Harry with a semi-serious look. “You can tell that she doesn’t just indulge you in your fantasies, but that she’s a willing participant, too.”

Harry offers her a small smile. “I think she is. At least, I hope she is.”

“Haz,” Zayn says softly. “I don’t think there’s anything that Louis would do if she didn’t want to do it. You know that already, you’re just doubting yourself.”

“Sometimes I think maybe I’m going to push her too far, you know? Like, what if she _doesn’t_ want to tie me up and spank me? What if somewhere I cross the line and we can’t get back from it?”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa,” Niall interrupts, putting a hand on Harry’s forearm. “Haz. Mate. Louis _fingered_ you while _we_ sat and watched. If you think that you’re somehow close to a line, you’re not. You’re _miles_ off. That woman would _happily_ participate in anything with you, as is clear by those photos.”

“If you’re that worried, talk to her,” Zayn offers easily. “You’ve both been really kinky already. Tell her you want more, if you want more. Or ask if she wants to be a bit more vanilla. I’m sure she’ll give you a straight answer no matter what.”

Harry nods, biting her lip a little. “How did I get so lucky?” she asks, looking down at the beautiful engagement ring on her finger. 

“You found your lobster,” Zayn replies simply. She shrugs one shoulder and then turns to face Niall. “It’s a good feeling.”

Niall beams at Zayn and leans forward, kissing her soundly on the lips. Harry smiles at them, taking a sneaky photo of their moment. 

“Dinner’s ready!” Anne calls up the stairs.

“Yes! I am _starving_ ,” Niall exclaims. She gets up off the bed and dashes from the room before Harry can even blink. 

“It’s a good thing I know that I come in second place to food,” Zayn says as she lazily gets up off the bed. Harry holds a hand out to her and Zayn laces their fingers together with a smile. “And if your mum was single and swung our way, I’d come in third.”

Harry snorts. “You’re an amazing girlfriend, Zayn.”

Zayn smiles. “I know.”

~*~

The sound of Willow’s laughter makes Harry’s insides tingle with happiness. She can’t get over how _big_ Willow is already. Her baby soft hair is growing longer and Harry is struggling to keep her nose out of it. She’s just glad that Liam and Sophia don’t mind her playing with their daughter at any chance she gets.

“If you’re happy and you know it, clap your hands!” Harry sings, gently clapping Willow’s hands together where she lies on Harry’s lap. Her knees are bent, her feet propped up on the couch, creating the best position for Harry to face Willow and for her to be comfortable, too. 

“If you’re happy and you know it, clap your hands!” Harry continues, giving Willow big smiles as she claps her hands together. “If you’re happy and you know it, then you really ought to show it! If you’re happy and you know it, clap your hands!”

The sound of another person’s hands clapping catches both Harry and Willow’s attentions. Their heads swivel to face the noise and Willow beams a big gummy smile when she sees her mum across the room. 

Sophia crosses the room to them and runs a hand down Harry’s back. “Thanks for watching her while I did some washing,” she says. “I can take her, if you like?”

“I’m good,” Harry replies. “Unless she needs to be fed?”

Sophia shakes her head. “Not just yet.”

“Then I’m good,” Harry repeats. She pulls a funny face at Willow, just to see her smile. She waves Willow’s hands, marvelling as Willow clutches Harry’s thumbs tightly.

“How are you?” Harry asks, looking up at Sophia who has deposited an over-filled washing basket on the coffee table to start folding clothes. 

“Tired, but good,” Sophia replies. “This one had me up every few hours last night.”

“Did you?” Harry asks, turning to face Willow. “You’re not meant to keep your mummy awake, Willow.” Willow gives her another toothless smile and Harry’s heart melts in her chest.

“She did,” Sophia continues. “Liam saw to her a few times, too, but she had that meeting this morning with Louis, so I let her sleep. I’m so thankful for maternity leave for same-sex couples. I don’t think I could’ve done this without Liam.”

Harry nods. “It’s good that she’s been here. She sends me the cutest updates of Willow doing stuff. I love it.”

Sophia chuckles. “She’s a good mum like that.”

“You both are.”

Sophia shoots her a tired, but happy smile, picking up yet another baby romper to fold in half and put aside. “I’m grateful that the meetings they’ve been having lately haven’t been too long. It’s good that Louis has found a team she trusts and can rely on enough to be able to go away for a few months. I swear she hasn’t had a proper break since before uni ended.”

Harry hums her agreement, pulling more faces at Willow. “She’s been putting in so many hours in preparation to go away. But I know she’ll be checking in at the office every other day. She thinks I don’t know that she’s going to take her work laptop with her, but I know she will.”

“The price of being in love with a dedicated businesswoman.”

“A price I’ll gladly pay every single day,” Harry replies honestly. “Working makes her happy. And I love that. But I’m also glad that I make her happy enough to go away with for a few months. This will test a whole new area of our relationship, I think.”

“It definitely will,” Sophia agrees. “The first time Liam and I went away, it was to Paris for a weekend. She got food poisoning the first night we were there. I had _everything_ planned, too. Had to cancel the whole lot. But I didn’t care. I just wanted her to know that I was there for her, and that I didn’t want her to be alone. She hated that our weekend was ruined, though.”

Willow sneezes and Harry immediately wipes her nose with a tissue.

“That sounds both tough and unpleasant,” Harry says, turning her attention back to Sophia. “It obviously worked out in your favour, though.”

Sophia laughs. “Obviously.” She sets down another romper and then stretches. “I’d better change her before giving her a feed.”

“I’ll do it,” Harry says. She gets up, holding Willow close. “I’ll be right back.”

Sophia waves her off and Harry wanders through the house to Willow’s room. She sets her down on the changing table, singing a song under her breath. She makes quick work of changing Willow’s nappy and cleaning her up. She pulls Willow’s trousers on straight and kisses her bare little feet, grinning against the soles as Willow pushes against her face. She pulls on her little booties next, biting back a smile at how utterly cute they are.

“I can’t wait to have one of you,” Harry says softly. She picks Willow up and kisses her cheek over and over, enjoying Willow’s little huffs of breath in her ear. “C’mon, let’s go get you some yummy lunch!”

She holds Willow close, her nose pressed to the top of Willow’s head as she walks back through to the lounge room. 

Sophia has made herself comfortable in an arm chair, a few cushions on her lap. She accepts Willow from Harry, lifting her shirt and unclasping her bra to feed her. 

“Can I get you a cuppa or anything, Soph?” Harry asks. 

“I’d _love_ one.”

“Back in a tic.” 

Harry heads for the kitchen, pottering around until she’s got two cups ready to be filled with hot water. Her phone chimes with a message from Niall who’s reacting to the photos of herself and Willow that she had taken earlier with a series of smiley face emojis. 

The kettle boils, getting Harry’s attention. She makes their cups of tea and takes them into the lounge room. She sets Sophia’s on a coaster on the coffee table and settles back on the sofa to drink her own. 

“Liam showed me the proposal video the other day,” Sophia says, looking up at Harry. “That flash mob looked fantastic!”

Harry beams. “I was so stunned! I had no idea that Louis had been planning that.”

Sophia gives her a pointed look. “You knew she was going to propose though, right?”

Harry nods. “Yeah. I mean, I knew it was going to happen at _some_ point, but not then, and definitely not the way she did it. We always talked about being married. I just didn’t expect such a proposal though.”

“It was a great proposal.”

“It really was,” Harry says happily, her mind automatically replaying the moment all over again. “I can’t believe that Niall and Zayn kept it from me, too! It must have taken ages for everyone to learn that choreography. And in the middle of exam time, as well. I’m still floored over it.”

“She’s a good woman, that fiancée of yours,” Sophia says fondly. “She’ll move heaven and earth for the ones she loves.”

“I know,” Harry replies, smiling down into her tea. “It should overwhelm me that I love her so much, but it just feels natural. You know?”

Sophia nods. “I know. Now, hurry up and get married and have a baby so Willow has a best friend for life.”

Harry laughs. “I’m planning on it already, believe me.”

And the thing is, that isn’t even close to a lie. Harry can’t wait to be married and be _Mrs Harry Tomlinson_. It makes her insides sing with happiness at the thought. 

Though she and Louis haven’t set a date yet, Harry knows that she wants it to be within a year. She doesn’t want a long engagement. She wants to be married to Louis _yesterday_. She wants that chapter of their lives to start so they can be the family that she’s sure they’re destined to be. 

The thought fills her with so much happiness she’s sure that she could outshine the sun.

~*~

“How did you do this by yourself?” Harry asks, peering at yet another row of engagement rings. None of which have caught her eye as the _perfect_ ring for Louis.

“I saw one and I _knew_ that it was the ring for you,” Louis replies easily. 

“It’s making me feel like a bad girlfriend.”

“Fiancée,” Louis corrects softly. 

“Fiancée,” Harry echoes, unable to keep the silly smile off her face. 

“And you’re not a bad fiancée for not being able to choose a ring,” Louis adds, rubbing her hand over Harry’s lower back. “I was incredibly lucky to be able to get your engagement ring exactly how I knew you’d like it. You’re easy to buy for like that.”

Harry huffs but silently agrees. She’s always thought that she was an easy person to buy things for, and apparently engagement rings fall into that category as well.

“I can show you another selection, if you like?” Laura, the sales assistant offers. Harry nods, standing up straight, her back aching a little from all of her bending over. 

Another tray of rings is taken from the display cabinet and set on the countertop. Louis slides her hand over Harry’s hip as she stands next to her, glancing down at the selection of rings. 

“Do you see anything you like?” Harry asks, her gaze roaming over the different rings.

“Not yet,” Louis replies. “We don’t have to find it today, love.”

Harry huffs out a breath. “We do, it’s already been a week and you _still_ don’t have a ring!”

Louis squeezes Harry’s hip gently. “We’ll find one when we find one.”

Laura produces another tray of rings, setting it down. Immediately, Harry scans the rings and then gasps. 

“That one!” she exclaims, pointing to the ring that she spotted. “Lou, that one!”

Laura plucks it from the soft bedding it rests in and holds it out. “Excellent eye,” she compliments. “This one is a lovely rose gold with a one carat diamond. There is room on the inside of the ring for an inscription, too, if you wish.”

Louis looks at Harry who nods. “Yes, please,” she says eagerly. 

Laura sets a piece of paper down in front of Harry and Harry quickly jots down what she wants the engraving to be. 

“Would you like to try it on?” Laura asks, handing the ring over to Louis, who takes it and slips it onto her ring finger.

“Perfect fit, love,” Louis says softly, her voice oddly filled with emotion. 

Harry beams. “It looks perfect on you.”

Louis presses a chaste kiss to her lips before sliding the ring back off her finger. “We’ll take it.”

Laura beams at them. “I can have this ready in a few hours for you, if you’d like to come back?” 

Harry nods. “That would be wonderful.” 

Once Laura has rang through the sale, and taken Harry’s contact details, she hands Harry a receipt for her purchase. 

“I will call when it’s ready, but it shouldn’t be too long.”

“Thank you,” Harry says, slipping the receipt into her purse. She slides her purse into her handbag, and then slings the bag over her shoulder. 

They exit the shop, Harry clinging onto Louis’ arm. “I’m so relieved we got your ring!”

Louis smiles and kisses the side of Harry’s head. “It’s beautiful, love. I can’t wait to wear it.”

“Me too,” Harry says, unable to stop smiling.

They stay there, outside of the shop for a few long moments, completely wrapped up in each other. So wrapped up that neither of them notice that someone is watching them until the flash of a camera goes off.

Dazed, Harry pulls back slightly from Louis’ embrace to see a man holding an expensive looking camera in front of his face, snapping photos.

“Louis! Are you and Harry engaged? What does Anne think of this?” the guy asks, firing off questions one after the other. “When’s the wedding? Are you going to invite any other celebrities?”

“No comment, mate,” Louis says, waving him off. Despite this, the guy keeps snapping photos. 

Louis sighs and tightens her arm around Harry’s middle. “Let’s go, love,” she says softly, walking them away from the paparazzo still snapping photos. 

Uneasiness settles in Harry’s stomach as she and Louis climb into her car. She glances over her shoulder as Louis quickly drives away. 

“Are you alright?” Louis asks once they’re far enough away from the shop. She steals a hasty look in Harry’s direction.

“Yeah, I’m fine,” Harry replies honestly. 

“I’m not sure how they knew we’d be there,” Louis says. “I’m sorry you had to go through that again.”

“Lou, you have nothing to be sorry for,” Harry replies emphatically. She places a hand on Louis’ thigh and squeezes softly.

It’s been a bit quiet on the media front these last two weeks, which Harry is thankful for. There had been an incident the week of exams that had left Harry a little shaken. Somehow, someone had found out what school she went to. It was after Louis had made an announcement regarding her company, and Harry happened to be in one of the photos. A paparazzo had followed Harry to school and harassed her until Niall and Zayn had done something about it.

They were used to being tailed by paparazzi because of who their families were, and because Niall had quite a social media following of her own, but it was a whole new thing for Harry to experience where she was the one their attention was on. She hadn’t liked it one bit. She especially hadn’t liked the scathing articles that had followed that very afternoon, speculating and making all kinds of vulgar comments on her and Louis’ relationship and the fact that she was still in secondary school.

It had distracted Harry during her first exam, and she felt like she absolutely could have done better if she hadn’t been so worked up. 

Louis had immediately put something into place that stopped the paparazzi from harassing Harry on school grounds, but that hadn’t stopped the articles from flooding in. Articles which she had tried _very_ hard to ignore, especially in the face of her exams. 

Seeing that paparazzo outside of the jewellers had been a bit of a shock, but thankfully it hadn’t been too invasive. At least Harry knew to expect some kind of comment from random people on her and Louis’ life to appear online, and she wouldn’t be shocked by it.

Which made zero sense to her, too. She didn’t understand why these people, these so-called journalists, wanted to press into her and Louis’ lives. She just wanted to do her own thing, and she knew that Louis did, too. Of course she knows that with Louis being such a high profile business woman that she was bound to draw media attention here and there, but it wasn’t for her business or her philanthropic work. Most of the time it was comparing Louis to the men in her field, or the fact that she was an out lesbian. That she was notorious for being a ‘man-eater’. That one Harry never understood. She didn’t understand how Louis could be a ‘man-eater’ when she is a lesbian. It just didn’t compute in her brain at all.

Louis, however, seemed to take it all in her stride. She only got upset when it directly involved Harry, or her family. 

Even as a kid, Harry hadn’t faced the paparazzi like she had faced in the last few weeks. And her mum was still more well-known in the fashion and modelling world when Harry was a baby so it made sense that she was papped every now and then. Anne wasn’t photographed nearly as much as she used to be. The paparazzi seemed to not care that she now had an office job that she really liked, or that she was no longer interested in returning to modelling, even as an older woman.

“Let’s go do something,” Louis says, interrupting Harry’s thoughts. 

“Like what?” Harry asks, turning her attention completely to Louis.

“Are you hungry? We could get lunch and maybe take a bike ride?”

Harry shifts in her seat. “That sounds like fun,” she agrees quickly. 

Which is how, just under two hours later, Harry finds herself cycling along the bike path of a park close to where they rented bikes from. She laughs as the back of her shirt billows out behind her, the wind tickling her stomach and back. 

She can hear Louis’ laughter floating to her from where she leads the way, riding ahead of Harry. It’s such a lovely day, barely a cloud in sight, giving just a taste of the summer that they’ve got coming their way. She can’t wait for summer to start and to travel with Louis. It’s all she’s been looking forward to since they planned it out after Willow was born. 

Harry closes her eyes for a moment, letting the wind rush through her hair and clothes. She smiles, unable to help herself, unable to stop the happy feelings bubbling up inside of her.

Louis stops after a short while and puts the bike stand down on her bicycle. Harry copies her, and Louis pulls out her phone. Her helmet is slightly askew and her cheeks are flushed. She looks absolutely beautiful, Harry thinks.

“We need to get a couple of selfies like this,” Louis says as she opens the front-facing camera. Harry steps into the frame and smiles, letting Louis take the photos. She pulls some faces with a couple of them and in others, she’s kissing Louis’ cheek, their happiness showing clearly on their faces.

“I’ll send this one to Mum, I think,” Louis says, showing Harry one of them both smiling at the camera. 

“Tell her I say hello, too,” Harry requests. 

“I can’t wait to see them next week,” Louis says as she puts her phone back in her pocket. She swings her leg over the bike and sits back on it. “I’ve missed them all, Mum especially, in these last few months.”

“It’s been a while since you’ve been back,” Harry comments. “It’ll be good for you to see your family before we go away.”

Louis leans over and kisses Harry soundly on the lips. “C’mon, there’s some flowers over there that you’d look beautiful next to and I need a new lock screen.”

Harry ducks her head, grinning. She sits back on the bike seat and follows Louis’ lead, happiness settling in her bones.

~*~

There’s articles online that evening speculating about Harry and Louis being engaged, including photographs of them leaving the jewellery store. What makes Louis the maddest, Harry notes, is that the paparazzo went into the store and asked the workers there what they had bought. And one of the workers said ‘an engagement ring’. It could have only been a worker, regardless of whether the article had said ‘a source close to the couple’ or not. No one else knew they were in that specific shop at that specific time.

Louis had the worker fired.

Despite all of that, Louis took out an advert in her favourite newspaper announcing their engagement. Harry immediately had taken a photo of the announcement and sent it to Gemma with a series of exclamation marks. 

The photo that Louis had chosen to go with the few lines was one of Harry’s favourites – Louis looked absolutely stunning. Just looking at it makes Harry smile.

She sent the photo to Zayn and Niall as well, letting them know that they might be asked questions about it online. Zayn texted back that she liked the photo and that made Harry’s heart warm with love for her friend.

Their day out had been so much fun. Harry knows that she’s going to miss them when they go away. Even though she’ll be away, too, she’s still going to miss them a lot. 

Harry’s phone buzzes next to her signalling an incoming Facetime call. When she realises that it’s Gemma, she hits accept immediately. Gemma’s face fills the screen of her phone and Harry waves to her big sister.

“ _Hi_!” she says excitedly. It has been too long since she’s spoken to Gemma. 

“Hey,” Gemma greets. She shifts on her bed and the phone jostles as she does. Harry figures that she has the right idea and she moves on her bed, too. Louis’ at work for a bit, getting some last minute things done in preparation for their holiday, so Harry decided to stay at home. She and her mum have a movie night planned, but Anne is still at work while Harry has had the afternoon off.

“I miss your face,” Harry says.

Gemma chuckles. “I miss your face, too. How’s things?”

Harry nods. “Good,” she replies. “Did you get my message?”

“I did,” Gemma starts, “that’s why I wanted to call. Nice engagement announcement, by the way.”

Harry smiles at her sister. “Thank you.”

“I saw the video Niall sent me, too. Of the flash mob. That was some seriously awesome choreography. I’m impressed. You look spectacularly shocked, too.”

Harry flushes at the memory. “It was the best thing _ever_ ,” she says emphatically. “I had no idea that Louis had organised all of that. Niall told me that she had everyone rehearsing for _weeks_. And I just thought she had some late nights at the office.”

“Louis sure is talented,” Gemma comments. “I told Niall that Zayn has got some moves, too. She looked really good in the video.”

“She did,” Harry agrees, “though she won’t ever admit it.”

“Niall said the same,” Gemma says. “How were your exams?”

“Good, I think,” Harry says. She shifts on her bed, pulling a teddy into her lap to hug with one arm while she chats. “A levels are _so hard_ , Gems. I don’t know how I managed to cram that much information into my head.”

“Well you _are_ a Ravenclaw through and through,” Gemma replies. “And I saw photos of your revision notes – everything was colour coded and _very_ concise.”

“How did you…?” she trails off. “Niall really needs to stop messaging everyone in my family updates on my life.”

Gemma’s laugh makes Harry smile. “You know that Niall adopted all of us the second she came into our lives. She was the first girl I ever kissed, you know.”

Harry groans, covering her face with her free hand. “Don’t remind me! If Niall isn’t flirting with Mum, she’s flirting with you. I don’t know how Zayn puts up with it.”

“Zayn knows it’s harmless,” Gemma replies. “Besides, she was the one to dare Niall to kiss one of the Styles women. I’m pretty sure if she thought she could’ve got away with it, she would’ve snogged Mum.”

“You have _no_ idea how true that is.” 

Gemma laughs again and Harry grins at her.

“How’s life across the pond?” Harry asks.

Gemma excitedly tells her all about the new promotion she got at her job and how much she’s loving it. Hearing her talk like she is makes Harry miss her even more. She’s so thankful for technology so she can talk to her big sister like she is. It makes the distance a little easier to bear.

Everything about Gemma’s stories are so exciting to Harry. She loves that Gemma loves her life in America, and that she’s thriving over there. It makes her so happy for her sister. 

“Actually, I met someone,” Gemma says after a few moments. 

“You did?” Harry asks, sitting up straight. Her teddy almost falls off her lap and she quickly rescues it. She turns her attention back to the phone. “Tell me _everything_!” she says excitedly.

“We met a few weeks ago at a pub after work,” Gemma begins. “You know I’m not one to meet people at pubs, but a bunch of us went to this place we don’t normally go to after work and yeah. We literally bumped into each other. And the next thing I know, we’re exchanging numbers and she’s calling me up to go out the next night.”

“ _She_?” Harry repeats, her excitement going off the charts.

Gemma rolls her eyes at Harry. “Yes, _she_.”

“Tell me more!”

“She’s Irish, actually,” Gemma says.

Harry has to laugh at that. “Wait until Niall finds out!”

“Telling Niall can wait. I want to see how this goes before I even tell Mum.”

“What’s she like?” Harry asks, genuinely curious. She’s never seen Gemma smile like this while talking about someone she likes, so they must be special.

“She’s wonderful. She’s absolutely gorgeous and she has a wicked sense of humour,” Gemma begins. “Here, I’ll send a photo through.” The screen pauses while Gemma fiddles on her phone, still talking though. “She’s over here working. Her family moved out here about six years ago to start up their business and she works for them.”

“What’s her name?” Harry asks. 

The screen comes off pause and Gemma’s face fills it once more. “Anissa. I sent you a photo, you should get it in a sec.”

Harry’s phone vibrates with the notification and she taps on the bubble. The iMessage conversation with Gemma loads and she taps the photo, seeing her sister standing with a beautiful woman, who is looking at Gemma like she’s the world. She has dark skin and Gemma looks _incredibly_ pale next to her. It makes Harry smile. Her hair is in its natural curly state, taking up a good portion of the photograph. 

It stuns Harry how _happy_ Gemma looks, too. She looks positively radiant, her arm around this mysterious woman who seems to have captured her attention completely. 

“Say something?” Gemma prompts.

Harry quickly flicks back to their phone call, giving her sister a beaming smile. “You look so happy, Gem.” Emotion laces her voice, she knows it does, but she doesn’t really care.

“I am.”

“Tell Mum,” she says. “She’ll be ecstatic that you’re this happy.”

Gemma squirms, something unreadable passing over her face. “I don’t know.”

“It’s not like she’s _forgotten_ that you’re bisexual, Gem,” Harry says, hoping that she’s interpreted Gemma’s look properly. “And I’m _engaged_ to a woman, too. She’s going to be absolutely fine with the fact that you’re dating a girl.”

A sigh comes through the phone. “I know, I know. It’s still so new, though. I don’t want to get Mum’s hopes up for it only to fizzle out.”

“Mum’s hopes or yours?”

“I hate that you know me so well.”

“No you don’t,” Harry says giving her sister a big, cheesy grin. She picks up her water and has a long sip. “Besides, if you’re _this_ happy, then she has to be a decent person. I know you’d never pick a loser to be in a relationship with.”

Gemma hums and nods. “I know.”

“ _So_ ,” Harry begins slyly. “Have you had sex yet?”

A look that can only be described as sibling intolerance crosses Gemma’s face. “I am _not_ talking about my sex life with you! I am still scarred from catching you and Louis having sex before Mum’s wedding.”

Harry laughs loudly, the force of her laughter tipping her over. She stays lying down on her bed, holding her phone up to her face. Her arm will start to ache shortly, but she doesn’t care. “To be honest, I don’t think Louis is over that yet, either.”

Gemma snorts. “It’s no wonder. Anyway, I _don’t_ want to be talking about my sex life. Or yours for that matter!”

“You love me,” she teases.

“Only because I’m obligated to as your big sister.” 

Harry rolls her eyes fondly at her sister. “Keep me updated, okay? I want to know _everything_ about her. What she likes, what kind of music she’s into, if she thinks _Love, Actually_ is the best film of all time. You know, the important things.”

“I’m pretty sure you’re the _only_ person who thinks that _Love, Actually_ is the best film of all time, Haz.”

“Yeah, because I’m the only one with taste,” Harry quips. 

Gemma snorts again, rolling her eyes.

Harry gives her a cheesy grin and rearranges herself on her bed so she doesn’t have to hold her arm up over her face anymore. “Tell me about your first date?”

A flush covers Gemma’s cheeks and she tells Harry about her and Anissa’s first date. Hearing the story makes Harry’s stomach swoop with happiness. She absolutely loves love and she’s so glad that her sister has a love to call her own. Just like she does.

~*~

There’s something about watching Louis do her boss thing that makes Harry _incredibly_ aroused. It doesn’t make a lot of sense to her, but she’s absolutely okay with that.

It’s the confidence that Louis exudes, the charm, the charisma. The absolute undeniable sexiness of her commanding a room’s attention the moment that she walks into it. And it’s never, never ever in a negative way. She makes every single person that she talks to feel like they’re the only person in the room, in the _world_ , and that’s a powerful and intoxicating feeling. One that Harry knows all too well. 

She’s charming, too, so very charming. It’s captivating. If attention could be bottled, Louis would be the creator of this particular flavour. Harry is positive that these three girls have fallen in love with her from the moment they sat down in this meeting room and honestly, Harry can’t blame them. She _is_ them. She just happens to be engaged to Louis – who is now proudly wearing her engagement ring. The one that has ‘ _you are my world_ ’ engraved on the inside of it. 

Just watching Louis work makes Harry’s pussy throb with need. 

It’s going to be a problem, she can tell. 

“…see why it’s so important to me. To _us_ , both of us,” Louis says, reaching her hand out to capture Harry’s fingers in her own.

Harry nods, despite having _no_ idea what has just been said. She’s sure Louis wouldn’t let her agree to something trivial or stupid. She trusts that of her fiancée. 

Kelly, the book publisher they’re meeting with, nods and says some more words that completely go over Harry’s head. She’s distracted. And for good reason. Louis’ arms look _amazing_ in the top she’s wearing. Strong like they could hold her up against a wall and fuck her until she’s screaming Louis’ name. 

Louis smiles at something Kelly says and then turns that blinding grin to Harry. She manages an encouraging smile back, but she knows that she’s been caught out. Louis’ expression changes ever so slightly and her tongue darts out to lick her lips. Harry’s pulse quickens at the sight. She crosses a leg over the top of the other, clenching her muscles around nothing. 

“If you can have those details to me by the end of the week, that would be wonderful,” Louis says. She stands up and shakes the hand of Kelly and Kelly’s two colleagues that shared the meeting with them before she drops a hand onto Harry’s shoulder. 

“Of course,” Kelly says. Her hand lingers a moment too long in Louis’ and Harry’s gaze narrows in on it. She stands up next to her fiancée and subtly puts her hand on Louis’ lower back. She feels Louis lean back into her and she can’t help but feel smug.

“We’re looking forward to working with you,” Louis says, sincerity flooding her voice. 

“We are too, Miss Tomlinson,” a mousy-haired girl whose name Harry can’t remember right now, says. She’s looking at Louis like she hung the moon. It’s a feeling Harry knows all too well. 

Louis flashes them all a smile and opens the glass door, holding it open for Harry to walk through first. 

The building is really lovely, Harry thinks as they make their way to the lifts. She can see why Louis wanted to buy _this_ publishing company. And it’s not just for the stipulations she’s made, either. It didn’t come as a surprise to Harry that Louis wanted to buy a publishing company. They had spent many conversations lamenting about the fact that there just _wasn’t_ the LGBTQIA plus novels out there that there should be. So when Louis decided that she was going to buy a book publishing company, Harry was all for it. Louis’ keen business sense had led her well with every company she’s bought so far, Harry knows that this one won’t be any different. 

They take the lift down to the car park, Louis’ hand in Harry’s the whole time. When they’re in the safety of Louis’ Range Rover, the dark windows blocking out any potential people looking in, Louis kisses Harry with all she’s worth.

“What has got into you?” Louis asks breathlessly, her lips sliding against Harry’s own. “We were in a _very_ important meeting, love.”

“You know I can’t function when you’re doing your sexy boss thing,” Harry replies. Her hands start unbuttoning Louis’ shirt, trying to push the offending material off her shoulders so she can properly see those arms she’s been getting wet over. 

Louis’ chuckle fills the car and she crowds against Harry as best as she can. “Let’s get home first before someone catches us.”

Harry grins. “That’s half the fun, isn’t it?”

When Louis doesn’t deny it, Harry makes quick work of unbuttoning her own shirt. “Did you see how every single one of those girls fell in love with you in there?” she asks breathlessly. Louis’ lips fasten themselves to the side of Harry’s neck, working what is sure to be an impossibly huge love bite. 

She barely remembers to bat Louis away from that spot on her neck. It’s getting too warm to wear scarves that will cover love bites properly. 

“What?” Louis asks, confused. 

Harry nods, her hands scrabbling to get as much of Louis’ clothes off as she can. “Kelly especially. I’m pretty sure she wants to have your babies right now.”

Louis snorts. “I believe that’s only you, love.”

A noise escapes Harry’s lips as Louis hooks her fingers under the elastic of Harry’s knickers. She inches closer to where Harry wants her to touch, teasing her. Harry’s shirt sits half on her body, half off, but she doesn’t care anymore. She has a hand on one of Louis’ arms and Louis’ fingers stroking over her clit, she doesn’t have the capacity to care about clothes anymore.

“Tell me more?” Louis prompts, pressing a little harder. Harry whimpers, biting down on her bottom lip, her eyes closing automatically.

“When we… _oh fuck_ ,” she gasps, her nipples straining against her bra with arousal. Louis can obviously see them as she closes her mouth over the fabric of Harry’s bra and teases her nipple with her teeth. “Kelly’s attention was on you… didn’t even… _fuck_ – she didn’t even look at me. Right there. Fuck. _Louis_.”

“Go on,” Louis says softly, moving to kiss the side of Harry’s neck, keeping her teeth away from the sensitive skin this time.

Harry whimpers, bucking her hips down. Louis’ teasing her so badly, barely moving her fingers and Harry just wants her to fuck her already. 

“I’m waiting,” Louis prompts, her fingers stilling completely.

Harry’s tongue darts out to lick her lips and she forces her eyes open, locking her gaze with Louis’. “She agreed with _everything_ you said, Lou.” She’s rewarded with Louis’ fingers slowly circling her clit. “I can’t believe you got her to agree to what you did.”

Louis’ grin is one that Harry wants to see for the rest of her life. It’s a smug, cat got the cream grin, and it just makes Harry wetter. “Well,” she begins, still slowly moving her fingers over Harry’s clit before dipping into her soaking wet vagina. “I think it’s only fair that there be _two_ books featuring an LGBTQIA plus main character for every one heterosexual main character that are published. Don’t you agree?”

Harry nods. “ _Yes_ ,” she pants, bucking down onto Louis’ hand with more force. “I absolutely agree.”

“I’m glad, love,” Louis replies. She takes her hand out from between Harry’s legs and Harry whimpers at the loss. “Let’s go home.”

Spluttering and ridiculously horny, Harry rounds Louis with an incredulous look. “I want an orgasm, though.”

Leaning over her, Louis opens the glove box and fishes out the wet wipes and hand sanitiser. “I want that for you too, love, but it’s end of business and this car park is going to be filled with people in less than two minutes. I’d rather not have someone see us having sex. Especially if it’s from a company I just bought.”

Harry huffs indignantly, buttoning up her shirt and straightening her skirt over her legs. Louis grins and presses a swift kiss to her lips as she puts the wipes and hand sanitiser back in the glove box. 

“I’m very mad at you right now,” Harry says petulantly, crossing her arms over her chest for emphasis. 

“I know, baby,” Louis replies. Her shirt is back on and she doesn’t even _look_ rumpled. Harry pokes her tongue out at Louis, who just laughs and reverses out of the parking space they’re in.

~*~

“I think I might start a YouTube channel.”

Harry looks up from where her hands are wrist-deep in glitter and glue courtesy of Louis’ twin sisters, Daisy and Phoebe, to look at Lottie, who’s standing in the doorway of the Tomlinson’s craft room, watching them with an amused smile. 

“Yeah?” Harry asks. 

One of the twins pokes Harry’s hand, trying to get her attention. Harry quickly looks back down at their project. They’re creating art. A unicorn and fairy painting that is going to hang on the wall in their bedroom. If they can stop using all of the glitter, that is.

“Yeah,” Lottie says. “I’m really into make-up and since Louis got me all of that stuff at Christmas time, I’ve been practicing loads. I’ve seen some other YouTube videos but I think I could do some on, like, how to shop at Boots and have great make-up.”

“Do it,” Harry says encouragingly. “The photos you send Louis of your make-up always look so good!”

Lottie gives Harry a shy smile. “Can I practice on you before you go?”

“Absolutely!” Harry agrees easily. 

“Did you want to be in my first video? Like, I could do your make-up?”

“Erm, if you like,” Harry says, a little unsure. 

“If it doesn’t turn out any good, I won’t upload it,” Lottie says reassuringly. “I just want to try it on someone first. Most videos start with people doing their own make-up and I think doing someone else’s might be cool, too.”

Harry gives her a warm smile. “Alright. When do you want to do it?”

“After tea?”

“Harry, look! I’m done!” Daisy excitedly exclaims.

Harry gives Lottie a small smile before turning her attention back to Daisy and Phoebe’s art work. “This looks _perfect_! Fit for a princess!”

Daisy beams at her. “Yay!”

“I’m done, too, Harry, look!” Phoebe exclaims a moment later.

Lottie disappears from the room as Harry’s attention turns back to the twins in front of her. 

“These are amazing. I am so proud of both of you!”

Daisy throws her arms around Harry’s neck in a hug. “Can we hang them now?”

“How about we put them aside to let them dry properly, and then we can hang them tomorrow?” Harry suggests. “Otherwise the paint and glue might run and ruin all of your hard work.”

“Oh. I don’t want that, Harry,” Daisy says solemnly. 

“Alright, well, if we’re all done, why don’t we put these aside and clean up. I think it will be tea time soon.”

Harry helps the twins clean up the messes they’ve made, and pack away all of the art supplies. She’s positive that she’s getting glitter absolutely _everywhere_ but she can’t really do anything about it just yet. 

When Daisy and Phoebe have finished putting their things away, Harry leads them to the bathroom to get cleaned up. The water quickly turns pink in the sink from the red paint on their hands. They giggle as glitter stubbornly sticks to the sink, refusing to wash down. 

Once they’re as clean, Harry turns to the sink to wash her own hands. Glitter stubbornly sticks to her nailbeds, no matter how hard Harry scrubs her hands. She sighs and shuts off the tap, figuring that it will come off eventually. 

Dinner is a raucous affair, as it usually is in the Tomlinson household. Harry sits between Louis and Lottie, surprised that Ernest is on Louis’ other side. But Louis has insisted on feeding her brother his dinner rather than Harry doing it like she requested to. 

“You’ve spent the better part of three hours with the other twins doing art, you deserve a break,” Louis had said by way of explanation.

Harry doesn’t mind, though. It gives her time to talk to Lottie about the video idea she’s already planned out. Lottie has an incredible imagination, she thinks. She’s quite excited to see how this first video turns out.

“C’mon, you lot, bath time,” Jay says after dinner. 

Harry volunteers to do the dishes with Félicité so that Jay can get Daisy and Phoebe bathed. Louis gives her a kiss on the shoulder and takes Doris and Ernest to the other bathroom to give them their baths, too. 

“Quiet now isn’t it?” Félicité comments as she reaches for the plate Harry just washed. 

“I’m definitely not used to it,” Harry replies. “But I’d get used to it quickly. I love it here.”

Félicité shakes her head. “It gets old quickly. But I love them.”

Harry shoots her a smile. “Your family is wonderful, Fizz.”

“I know,” Félicité agrees. She picks up another plate to dry, bumping her hip against Harry’s own. 

“Do you have anything planned for the summer hols?” Harry asks. 

“Not really,” Félicité replies. “We’re going to Barcelona for a couple of weeks in July, which I’m looking forward to.”

“We’re stopping there, too,” Harry says. 

“Yeah, Louis said. She booked our holiday for us so we overlap a bit with you guys.”

Harry beams. “I didn’t know that! We’re going to have so much fun.”

“I wish that Jaimee could come, too,” Félicité says. “But mum says this is a family only holiday.” 

“You’ll just have to make the most of the time you’re together when you’re not on holiday, then,” Harry says. 

Félicité hums. “I suppose.”

“How is Jaimee? I saw your Instagram photos from bowling the other night. You looked like you both had fun.”

Félicité gives a small smile, private like she’s remembering something. “It was good. She’s really amazing.”

“That’s wonderful,” she says. “Do you want any date ideas? Fun things that you can do together during the holidays?”

“Yeah, I’d love that,” Félicité replies enthusiastically. “It’s a bit hard when we’re still too young to do anything too fun.”

Harry chuckles. “You’ll be older before you know it.”

Félicité hums. “Still. What did you have in mind?”

“Well, if your parents are okay with it, you could go to Brighton for the day and have a day of it on the Brighton Pier?” Harry suggests. 

“Wait, I need to write these down,” Félicité says. She sets the dish towel down and unlocks her phone, tapping away on the screen for a few moments. Harry keeps washing the dishes, setting them in the rack for Félicité to get when she’s finished.

“Alright, done. Anything else?”

Harry nods. “There’s always mini golf, the movies, a trip to London to go on the London Eye. Doesn’t Doncaster have a wildlife park? You could go there?”

Félicité nods, her thumbs flying across her screen as she types everything out.

“If you’re into creepy things, there’s a ghost bus tour you can do in London if you go there,” Harry adds. She empties the sink and dries her hand on Félicité’s discarded towel. “And the classic favourite of mine is a picnic in the park. With it being summer, hopefully it won’t rain or be too hot. But you could prepare everything at home and take it in a picnic basket. That’s romantic.”

Félicité grins at her. “Thank you. These are all great.”

Harry beams at her. “Let me know how they go?”

Félicité nods. “I will,” she promises, picking up another towel to keep drying the dishes. “Have you and Louis done many of those?”

“A few,” Harry replies. “But I want to do more cute dates like that. They’re fun.”

“Would you like a cuppa?” Félicité asks as she fills the kettle. 

“I’d love one,” Harry replies. She gets the cups out of the cupboard and sets them down. Félicité puts teabags in each of their cups, including ones for Jay, Dan, and Louis for when they’ve finished in the bathrooms. 

They take their cups into the lounge room and sit on the sofa together. Harry tucks her feet up under her, shuffling closer to Félicité who puts a soft blanket over their legs. Harry pats the blanket down around her feet so that it doesn’t let in a draft and takes a long sip of her cuppa, letting its warmth wash over her. 

She isn’t cold, not by any means, but it’s just comforting to have a cuppa under a blanket, she thinks. 

After she’s part way through her tea, she turns to Félicité and starts talking about the book she’s reading as an advanced reader copy from the book publishing company that Louis just bought. 

Félicité perks up when Harry says that the protagonist is a bisexual female. Harry smiles as Félicité jots the book title and author down in her phone to check out when it’s published. It warms Harry’s insides to know that there’s going to be books out there that Félicité can identify with. 

They’re still talking books when Louis comes back into the lounge room looking more than a little damp and tired. 

“Ooh, a cuppa sounds like heaven,” Louis says as she spots the cups in their hands.

“In the kitchen,” Harry replies. 

Louis’ face lights up and she heads for the kitchen. She returns a moment later, her hands wrapped around the cup, a ridiculous moan falling from her lips. “That hits the spot.”

“Come sit, we’re talking books,” Félicité says. “Harry said you bought a publishing company?”

Louis nods and she slides under the blanket next to Harry. “I did, yeah. A good ’un, too.”

“Did you know,” Harry begins, sliding her legs out straight so she can face Louis a little better. “That when you’ve been around your family for more than a few hours, your Doncaster accent really comes out.”

“Does it?” Louis asks.

Harry gives her a bemused smile. “It does. I don’t really notice how much you clip it when we’re in London, but when you’re here, you just let go.”

Louis laughs. “God I love being back here.”

Harry slides her hand under the blanket to rest on Louis’ thigh. “Being here suits you.”

“So… Books?” Louis prompts. 

Lottie enters the lounge as Félicité starts talking to Louis about the books she’s been reading, and the one Harry was telling her about. 

“I’m borrowing Harry for a bit,” Lottie says. 

Louis pouts. “But I just sat down.”

“I’ll be back soon,” Harry promises. She leans over and kisses Louis soundly on the lips before lifting the blanket and sliding out. She quickly covers Louis again with it and shoots Félicité a smile before taking their dirty cups to the kitchen. She rinses them out and sets them aside for later. 

On the way back passed the lounge room, Harry hands Félicité her Kindle. “Open the one I’m currently reading and have a look. Just flick back to the start, I remember where I’m up to. I’d love to know your thoughts.”

Félicité accepts the Kindle and nods. “Alright, thanks!”

Harry grins at her before following Lottie up to her room. It’s not as cluttered as Harry expected it to be. There’s a place for everything, and it’s quite neat. She thinks that her and Louis’ room is probably messier than this is. 

There’s a camera on a tripod, facing the end of Lottie’s bed that Harry figures is going to be the ‘stage’ of the video. Lottie has an array of make-up lined on her desk chair which she’s moved closer to the bed for easier reach. 

“I figured I’d do a nice summery look for you since we’re starting summer,” Lottie says. “Is that alright?”

Harry nods. “Yeah, that sounds good.”

“Alright, I’ll start.” She switches on the camera and gets it in focus before sitting next to Harry on the bed. 

She’s very professional, Harry thinks, as she introduces herself, and then Harry. She explains to the camera what she’s going to do for Harry’s make-up and then says she’ll do another summery look for herself so that people have options. Harry thinks that it’s a good idea, and it’s certainly something that she’s never thought of to do before.

Lottie continues to talk through each item as she uses it, holding it up to the camera for it to focus on the item so people can probably see it better. 

Half way through, there’s a knock on the door and Jay pops her head in. “Alright, girls?”

Both Lottie and Harry nod. 

“Ooh, that looks lovely, Lottie,” she compliments. 

“Wait until it’s done, we’ll come down in a bit,” Lottie replies. 

“Alright. Both sets of twins are in bed, so don’t be too loud.”

“We won’t be,” Harry promises.

Jay shuts the door behind her as she leaves and Harry turns back to face Lottie properly. 

“I’ll just edit that bit out,” Lottie says and Harry grins.

“Probably a good idea.”

They continue with the task, Harry turning her face whenever Lottie needs her to, but otherwise staying very still. It’s an odd feeling, someone else doing her make-up. And it’s not one that she’s used to. But she quickly grows used to Lottie’s soft hands on her face. 

When Lottie has finished, she hands Harry a mirror and she gasps at how good everything looks. 

“Yeah? You really think so?” Lottie asks.

Harry nods, setting the mirror down. “This looks _fantastic_ , Lottie. You have great colour style and a _very_ steady hand.”

Lottie beams at her. “Thank you.”

“Can I stay while you do your own make-up, too?” Harry asks.

“Yeah, sure,” Lottie replies. “It won’t take me long.”

Harry shifts so she’s a bit further away from Lottie on the bed and she just watches her talk to the camera again and put her own make-up on this time. She’s incredibly talented, Harry thinks as she watches in silence. She has great colour coordination and she must have watched hundreds upon hundreds of other videos and has _still_ managed to get a style that is all her own. Harry is really proud of Lottie, and she hopes that Lottie’s YouTube channel is a success, she deserves it.

Once Lottie has finished with her make-up, she turns to face Harry and Harry shuffles closer again. She ends the video and Harry gives the camera a wave, thanking Lottie for her make-up, too. 

Lottie shuts the camera off. “The hardest part is editing,” she comments as she takes the camera off the tripod. “I messed around with some videos earlier in the week and I swear it took me ten times as long to edit as it did to film the video.”

“Oh, that doesn’t sound good,” Harry replies. “I have no idea about video editing or I’d offer my help.”

“That’s alright,” Lottie says, setting the SD card down on her desk. “I’ll have fun with this later. Let’s go downstairs and show off to everyone.”

Harry grins at that. “Alright.”

They leave Lottie’s room as quietly as possible and head downstairs to where the awake members of the house are. Harry spots Louis chatting to her mum, a glass of wine in her hand, looking completely relaxed and at ease. Jay looks up when she and Lottie enter the lounge room and she gives them a big smile.

“You both look wonderful!” she compliments.

Louis’ head swivels around. “Give us a look then.”

Harry makes her way over to Louis and squashes herself into the arm chair her fiancée is in. 

“Beautiful,” Louis says softly, pressing her lips to Harry’s own. Harry smiles into the kiss and pulls back after a moment. 

“Lottie is really talented,” Harry says, turning to face Lottie who has sat next to her mum on the sofa.

“You did amazing, Lotts,” Louis compliments. 

“Thanks,” Lottie replies, smiling brightly. 

Louis presses a kiss into the side of Harry’s neck before picking up a second glass of wine and handing it to Harry. “Here you go, love.”

Harry takes a sip and sighs into the glass. “This is really nice.”

As Harry takes another sip of wine, Dan joins them, coming back down the stairs, a baby monitor in hand. 

“They’ve settled again,” he says, kissing Jay on the top of her head. 

“Good,” Jay replies. “I don’t want to be up all night again with them.”

“Have they been giving you trouble?” Louis asks, glancing between her mum and Dan.

“Doris is teething again, so I’ve separated her and Ernie from sleeping together,” Jay begins, “it’s been a long week. Doris kept pushing Ernie in her sleep, and waking him up because she was uncomfortable. They’ve both been pretty grumpy all week. Which means there’s been little to no sleep for Dan or me when we’re having to get up and see to them every few hours.”

“It’s like dealing with newborns all over again,” Dan adds. He settles into the sofa on Jay’s other side and picks up his own glass of wine.

“Yikes,” Louis says, sympathy lacing her tone. 

“Anyway, tell me more about this book publishing company that Fizzy was telling me about just before,” Jay says, effectively changing the topic.

At her name being spoken, Félicité looks up from the Kindle she’s holding. “This book is good,” she says, her gaze locking with Harry’s. “Thanks for letting me read it.”

“Keep going,” Harry urges. “I don’t mind if you keep it tonight.”

Félicité gives her a grateful smile. “Thanks. I might go up to my room to read in peace, then.”

“No loud music,” Jay says as Félicité stands. 

“I won’t,” she promises. “Night, everyone.”

“Night,” they all chorus. 

Harry stands up and takes her and Louis’ empty glasses. “More wine, anyone?”

“I’d love one,” Jay says. “The bottle is in the kitchen.”

Harry nods and sets the glasses in her hands down on the coffee table and heads into the kitchen, the sounds of Louis telling her mum about the publishing company following her. She’s so proud of Louis. She’s a woman who knows _exactly_ what she wants and she does her best to get it. And Harry loves that about her. 

Other people have nothing on Louis Tomlinson, Harry thinks, pride swelling in her chest.

There’s a mostly empty bottle of wine in the fridge that Harry figures is the one that had been opened first, and sitting next to it is an identical one. She locates a bottle opener and makes quick work of the cork in the unopened bottle, breathing a sigh of relief as the cork slides out with only a bit of effort. Harry picks up both bottles and makes her way back into the lounge room. 

Silently, she refills everyone’s glasses, and takes the empty bottles back into the kitchen for recycling. 

She re-joins the others in the lounge room and sits in the armchair that Félicité had vacated. Louis shoots her a look and Harry winks at her. She folds her feet up underneath her, smoothing her skirt over her knees to keep them warm, and she settles back to get comfortable. She’s more than happy to sit and listen to Louis talking to her mum, enjoying this side of her. 

It’s no secret that Louis misses her family a lot, and if she had her way, they’d live in the same building that she does. But Louis told her that Jay refused to let her kids grow up in the hustle and bustle that is London. Harry can’t blame her. While there’s so much to do and see in London, Jay has a point about growing up in a smaller town and appreciating the things that they have there.

By the time the conversation starts to wind down, Harry feels pleasantly warm from the wine, and more than a little bit sleepy. She yawns into her hand, blinking slowly. Lottie went up to bed half an hour after Félicité did, and Harry is starting to think they’ve got the right idea. 

“C’mon, love, time for bed.”

Harry looks up to see Louis standing in front of her. “Alright.” She doesn’t know when the wine glasses disappeared, or when Jay and Dan did, either, but she can’t exactly think straight at the moment.

Harry takes Louis’ hand and follows her through the house. 

“C’mon, time for a quick shower and then we can get into bed,” Louis says. 

Harry nods, letting Louis hold open the bathroom door for her. She yawns again and leans against the sink. She pulls out some make-up wipes and pauses to look at her reflection for a few moments, admiring Lottie’s work before wiping it off. Louis has turned on the hot tap in the shower stall and steam fills the room after a few moments. She goes in first and Harry finishes up at the sink before joining her. Louis crowds behind her, making quick work of washing Harry’s back for her. She’s not that out of it that she can’t wash the rest of herself, stepping out of the way so Louis can get under the spray. It makes her miss Louis’ shower with its ample room and dual shower heads. 

Once they’ve showered, Harry dries herself off with the towel and hangs it up to dry, walking back to their bedroom naked. Louis hastily follows her, shutting the bedroom door firmly behind her.

“Princess, we’re not at home, you can’t just walk around naked here,” Louis says softly.

“Oops,” Harry replies, yawning again. “’M sorry.”

“It’s okay. Just remember to put on a robe if you have to get up during the night at all.”

“I will,” Harry says. She climbs into bed, still completely naked, while Louis potters around. “Come cuddle me.”

Louis huffs a slight laugh. “In a minute.”

“Now,” Harry whines. “I’m tired and want cuddles.’

She catches Louis rolling her eyes fondly at her. She shuts off the overhead light and climbs into bed next to Harry, equally naked. Harry makes grabby hands at her and grins when she comes into contact with Louis’ skin. 

They shuffle and get comfortable, bumping into each other a few times as they do, trying to adjust to the darkness of the room. 

“Thank you for spending time with my sisters,” Louis says when they’re settled in. “It means a lot to me.”

“They’re all so much fun,” Harry says sleepily. “I love them all.”

Louis’ lips press against Harry’s naked shoulder, her hand sliding over Harry’s stomach to rest. “I love you.”

“Love you too, Lou,” Harry mumbles. She falls asleep a moment later, missing anything else that Louis might have to say.

~*~

Harry doesn’t remember the last time she felt this relaxed.

In fact, she’s probably going to fall asleep if she feels any more relaxed. She guesses that’s the point of a spa day with her mum, though – to relax and enjoy the services that this wonderful place offers.

It had been her mum’s idea, one that Harry had readily agreed to. A mother daughter day of relaxing, getting massages, being pampered and then a lovely dinner somewhere that Anne has been dying to try for a while now. It really is everything that Harry could want for her last day and night at home.

Tomorrow she officially moves in with Louis.

Officially because most of her stuff is already in boxes in Louis’ spare room, just waiting for Harry to unpack them. 

She has a few essentials still at home, of course, but the majority of her belongings are at Louis’ flat (soon to be their flat) waiting.

The masseuse working on Harry’s back is making miracles. Knots that Harry didn’t even _know_ she had are disappearing. She feels like melted butter right now. She hopes that her mum feels the same.

Once the masseuse has finished, Harry wraps herself in the robe she was given and moves to the next room for her pedicure and manicure. Anne is already there, her feet soaking in water in a bubbling foot spa treatment. Harry takes the seat next to her and reaches over for her mum’s hand. 

Anne gives her a loving smile. “How was your massage?” 

“Amazing,” Harry replies, squeezing her mum’s hand gently. “I think I dozed off.”

“Me too.”

Another one of the spa employees sets up Harry’s foot spa, adding something divine smelling to the water that Harry puts her feet into. The water is gloriously warm and her feet feel softer already. 

“This place is wonderful. We should do this more often,” Harry says, shifting to face her mum a little. “When I get back, we should do this once a month.”

“Deal,” Anne agrees, holding out her pinkie finger. Harry hooks her own in it and gives a slight squeeze. 

“And when Gemma comes for a visit, we’ll make her come with us, too.”

“She’ll love it here,” Anne comments. “I can’t believe both of my babies are going to be living out of home from tomorrow.”

Harry’s heart clenches a little. “I’m still in London, though. And I’ve got a car now – I can drive back home whenever I want.”

Anne’s hand closes over Harry’s again. “I know, sweetheart. It won’t stop me from missing you, though.”

Harry lifts her mum’s hand up and kisses the back of it. “The first Saturday of every month we’ll come here and have a day just to ourselves, alright?”

“Alright.”

By the time the water turns cool, there’s a spa employee there to dry Harry’s feet off and start on her pedicure. It tickles a little and Harry has to bite her lip a few times to stop from laughing out loud, but she manages. Barely. 

When her pedicure is all finished, complete with a lovely pastel purple nail polish on her toes, Harry is more than ready to have her manicure done and go out to dinner with her mum. She makes small talk with her nail technician, and feels like she’s made a friend when they’ve finished. 

Anne’s manicure takes a little longer than Harry’s does, so Harry goes and gets changed, putting on the dress she’d brought with her to go out to dinner in. It’s a pastel pink colour that matches her newly done nails perfectly. She twirls in front of the mirror and smiles, taking a few selfies and uploading one to Instagram with the outfit of the day tag. 

She approaches the service desk and is greeted by one of the sales assistants. 

“Are you ready to settle your bill?” the girl, Poppy, asks.

“I am,” Harry replies. She opens her handbag carefully and pulls out her purse. She slides out her black Amex card and hands it over. “I’m paying for the Styles party, please.”

Poppy nods, typing away on the computer in front of her. “Would you like a copy for your records?”

“Yes, please.”

Poppy hums to herself and the sound of a printer whirs to life behind her. She passes Harry the invoice and her credit card back and wishes her a lovely evening. Harry returns the sentiment and sits down in one of the plush arm chairs in the little waiting area. 

She pulls out her phone and switches it on, tapping carefully on the screen to avoid chipping her new manicure. There’s a message from Niall saying that she and Zayn have arrived in Paris safely, along with a selfie of them in front of the Eiffel Tower that Harry immediately saves. She makes it Niall’s contact photo and sends back a reply of how jealous she is. 

She misses her best friends already.

Their girls day out had been so much fun – filled with laughter and memories that Harry will cherish for a long time. Niall hadn’t reconsidered a matching tattoo, but she had designed a small one for Zayn to get, which she did on the inside of her left ankle that same day. Watching Zayn get tattooed made Harry want to get another one even more. She was just torn between a few ideas. That and she wanted Louis to be there when she got her next one. 

“Ready, poppet?” Anne asks, interrupting Harry’s thoughts.

“Yes!” Harry replies. She locks her phone and slips it back into her handbag, looking up to see her mum wearing a very gorgeous black dress, her hair down around her shoulders in a stylish tousled look. 

Anne starts for the service desk but Harry stops her before any of the workers see her.

“I’ve already paid,” Harry says.

Anne raises her eyebrows at Harry and Harry just smiles.

“Let me get this one,” Harry says. “It’s the least I can do.”

“…Alright,” Anne agrees warily. 

They leave together, heading for the car park. Harry slides into the passenger seat and buckles her seat belt in.

“I love your dress,” Harry compliments.

“Thank you. I got it last week. I figured that it could use a night out before going to live in my wardrobe.”

“It looks beautiful on you.”

Anne reaches over and squeezes Harry’s hand gently before putting it back on the steering wheel. 

They reach the restaurant in good time, and make their reservation. The atmosphere is very warm and welcoming, Harry thinks, as the host shows them to their table towards the back of the room. 

“I’ve never had dinner at one of Gordon Ramsay’s restaurants before,” Harry comments as she sits across from her mum. “This place is lovely.”

“Gina, Louis’ assistant, was raving about it. She made the booking for me a few weeks ago, and I knew that I had to bring you with me,” Anne says, flipping open her cocktail menu.

Warmth fills Harry at that. She smiles at her mum as a server comes and asks them if they would like a pre-dinner cocktail and snacks. 

“No snacks, thank you, but I would _love_ the violet twilight, please,” Harry says and Brian, their server, nods at her. 

“Oh, that yellow bird sounds wonderful, I’ll have one of those, please,” Anne says, giving Brian a dazzling smile. He flushes a little, but jots their drinks down and takes the menus, tucking them under his arm. 

He then recites the specials while handing them their dinner menus. Harry nods as she listens, thinking that a few of the options sound nice. He leaves, promising to be back with their cocktails shortly. 

Harry smooths down the skirt of her dress and crosses her ankles off to the side, feeling rather posh sitting in this beautiful restaurant with her mum. There’s already a good crowd of people and it isn’t quite the dinner time rush yet, either. She looks at her menu, quickly deciding that she wants a starter and her mum makes a noise of agreement. Everything on the menu looks absolutely amazing and Harry can feel her stomach rumbling in anticipation.

“I might get something off the grill,” Anne comments. Harry hums, thinking that she might, too, until she sees something that makes her smile.

“I’m going to get that cheeseburger, it sounds so delicious.”

Brian comes back with their drinks and they both thank him before ordering their starters, main meals, and dessert selections. 

“Thank you for today, Mum, I had a wonderful time,” Harry says, taking a sip of her drink. It tastes as good as it looks and the alcohol immediately flushes Harry with warmth.

“I did too, sweetheart,” Anne replies. “I’m so glad we get to do this before you go on holiday.”

“Me too.”

Anne takes a sip of her cocktail and lets out a surprised noise. “Ooh, this _is_ lovely. I think I might message Robin to pick us up tonight so I can have a few more drinks.”

“Good idea, Mum,” Harry agrees, taking another sip of her delicious cocktail. 

They chat while they drink, talking about the places that Harry is going to go on holiday, with Anne telling her places that she absolutely _must_ visit. Every time she mentions somewhere new, Harry makes a note in her phone. She wants to experience as much as she can while on holiday with Louis. And her mum has travelled a _lot_ so she knows all of the best places to go.

Anne’s phone buzzes with a reply from Robin saying he’s more than happy to collect them when they’re done. 

Brian returns with their starters, setting the plates down in front of them. He holds out a bottle of the Barossa Valley Shiraz that Anne had ordered for dinner as well and pours her a taste first. Anne has a sip of it and nods once she’s swallowed. 

“Lovely.”

“Excellent,” Brian replies. He pours a glass for Anne and Harry each and leaves the bottle on the table for later refills. It’s a really lovely tasting wine, Harry thinks as she has a sip. She thanks Brian for bringing their food and picks up her fork to start her salad. She closes her eyes as she swallows the first bite. 

“This is amazing,” she says. “I love Gordon Ramsay so much.”

Anne chuckles at her exclamation. “He does put together a good menu, doesn’t he?”

Harry nods. “Please tell Gina that she is a goddess for recommending this place.”

“I will,” Anne promises.

Their starters are soon gone and their conversation flows easily. Harry feels so grown up sitting in a posh restaurant drinking wine with her mum. She wonders if Gemma felt like this the first time Anne took her out as an adult. 

While she’s thinking of her sister, Harry sends her a text, knowing that Gemma will get it whenever she’s awake and free. A pang goes through her as she realises just how much she misses Gemma. She wonders if she can convince Louis to make a stop in America on their holiday so she can see Gemma. 

It’s been a long time since Christmas when Louis had Gemma flown in, and while she loved the two weeks they had together, it went by too quickly, and Gemma had to go back to work. She makes a note in her phone to send Gemma a loving email when she gets home.

Before Harry knows it, she’s drank one glass of wine and Brian is bringing their dinners over. The cheeseburger she’s ordered looks _amazing_ and she can’t wait to take a bite. Brian pours her another glass of wine and tops Anne’s up as well before disappearing again. Harry quickly takes a photo of her dinner, eager to show that off on social media later. She picks her burger up with both hands and takes a large bite. The flavours burst onto her tongue and she has to hold back a moan at how good it tastes. 

They’re both silent as they eat, too wrapped up in the food to continue the conversation. Harry doesn’t mind, though. She’s just glad her mum is enjoying her dinner as much as she is.

Half way through her burger, Harry has to set it down to have a drink of wine. The triple cooked chips that came with her burger are just as tasty as the burger itself, she thinks. 

“Try one of these,” Harry says, holding out a chip for her mum to take. Anne takes it and pops it into her mouth.

“That’s good.”

Harry nods. “I know. I love this dinner so much.” She picks up her burger again, taking another bite of it. There are strings of melted cheese joining the burger and her mouth, making her smile. 

Once Harry has finished her burger, she sits back, wiping her fingers and mouth on her napkin. That has to be one of the best meals she has ever had, she decides. And she loves a _lot_ of different foods. 

Now that she’s finished eating the majority of her dinner, Harry feels like she can hold a proper conversation with her mum. She talks about the publishing house that Louis bought and the fact that she’s getting to read advanced copies of books. 

“I’ve got my Kindle loaded up with books to read while on holiday,” Harry says as she picks up her wine glass to have a sip. “I think there’s some in there that you’d really like, too.”

“Keep a list for me? And I’ll read them when you get back.”

Harry beams at her mum, setting her glass back down on the table. “Refill?” she offers. She fills both of their wine glasses again and sets down the nearly empty bottle back on the table.

This is easily one of the best wines she has _ever_ had. She takes a subtle photo of the bottle label and makes a mental note to tell Louis about it later. She finishes off her chips, sad that they’re gone, but happy that she enjoyed her meal so much. Niall would love it here, she thinks. Especially now they’re all of legal drinking age (not that it really stopped them before, but now it isn’t frowned upon).

“What made Louis want to buy a book publishing company?” Anne asks once she’s finished the last of her bavette. 

“We both like books,” Harry replies with a shrug. “And since Fizzy came out to her, she realised just how few LGBTQIA plus books there are out there, especially with LGBTQIA plus main characters. So she figured the best way to get more of those books published was to buy a company to make it happen.”

“I guess when you’re in the position she’s in, it’s easy to change things like that,” Anne muses. 

Harry nods, tucking a strand of curly hair behind her ear. “She really is making the world a better place. I never thought about how much difference one person could make but she’s gladly proven me wrong.”

Anne gives Harry a soft smile. “I’m so glad you’re happy, Harry. It means the world to me.”

Flushing, Harry ducks her head. “She makes me so happy, Mum. She has the biggest heart of anyone I have ever known. Every day I wonder how I got so lucky to be chosen by her, for her to love me like she does. And I know that I am just so blessed to have her in my life.” 

Anne falls silent. Harry picks up her wine glass for something to do, waiting for her mum’s response. 

“It used to worry me so much how intensely you felt for Louis,” Anne begins, completely catching Harry’s attention. “But you’ve been through so much together in such a short amount of time. And, well, I’d have to be blind not to see how much she cares for you. A love like that is rare. And while I think you’d still do well to go off to uni on your own, I know you’ll make the right decision for yourself, and I trust you to do it.”

Harry’s breath catches in her throat and she reaches across the table for her mum’s hand, squeezing it gently. “Thank you, Mum.”

Anne gives her a soft smile. “You and Gemma are my world. I only ever want you to be happy.”

“I am.”

Brian chooses to come back at that moment, clearing their plates for them. He says that their desserts will be out shortly.

“I’m just going to pop into the ladies,” Anne says once Brian has left. She takes her handbag and leaves Harry sitting at their table. 

Harry pulls out her phone and uploads the photo she took earlier in the evening of her outfit, tagging it with ‘date night with my mum’. Niall is, predictably, the first one to like the photo and leave a comment that makes Harry grin. She opens her messages and texts Niall the photo of her dinner, just to make her jealous. Niall texts back a series of emojis that Harry has a hard time deciphering until Niall follows it with a reply of ‘ _we’re going wherever that is when we’re both back in the country_ ’. Harry texts her agreement.

She slides her phone back into her bag as her mum walks back through the restaurant. She sits down, picking up her wine glass to have another drink. 

A moment later, Brian returns with their desserts, making Harry’s mouth water. She was sure that she couldn’t fit another bite into her stomach, but the sorbet she ordered is too scrumptious looking to pass up. 

The presentation of each of their meals have been so lovely that Harry is glad she’s taken photos of everything. She can’t wait to show this one to Niall as well. 

“How’s your treacle tart?” Harry asks once she’s half way through her sorbet.

“Really delicious,” Anne replies. “The salted caramel ice cream goes really well with it.”

Anne offers her a taste, which she greedily accepts, offering some of her own sorbet for Anne to try, too. 

“I wonder if they’d cater my wedding,” Harry ponders as she finishes her dessert. “I think we’d have the best food ever if they did.”

“I’ll see if I can find out,” Anne replies.

“Thanks, Mum!” 

Anne texts Robin once their desserts are finished and they’re drinking the last of the wine. He messages when he’s left and Harry gets up, telling her mum she’s going to the ladies room first. 

She feels a little wobbly on her feet, but flushed with happy warmth from the wine. She makes her way to the toilets without any mishaps. As she’s exiting, she almost bumps into Brian, who reaches out a hand to steady her.

“Thanks!” she says, feeling a little embarrassed. 

She meets her mum as she’s settling their bill and leans against the counter with her elbows. Once the bill has been paid, they make their way to Anne’s car. Robin pulls up in an Uber as they’re climbing into the passenger’s side of the car. 

Once they’re home, Harry kicks off her shoes and gives her mum a giant hug.

“Thank you for today, it was the best.”

Anne returns the sentiment and kisses the top of Harry’s head. “Sleep well, sweetheart.”

“Night, Mum. Night, Dad.”

She waves at them and makes her way up the stairs to shower and climb into bed at her childhood home for the last time.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As you've probably noticed, I've updated the tags to reflect this chapter. There's a lot more d/s stuff in this chapter.
> 
>  
> 
> Thank you to my lovely beta, Jada, for all of your help and patience with this chapter. I appreciate it. ♥

~*~   
_Louis_

“That’s the last of it!”

“Wow, you’re all officially moved in. How does it feel?”

“Sweaty.”

Louis rolls her eyes fondly and nudges at Harry with her shoulder. “C’mon, I’ll get you a drink.”

“Hang on a second,” Harry says. She grabs the back of Louis’ tank top and pulls her in close. She grins and dips her head, kissing Louis softly. Louis sighs into the kiss, wrapping her arms around her fiancée (she still can’t get over that) in a loose hold. 

A few of Harry’s errant curls tickle Louis’ forehead as she tilts her head to deepen the kiss. She breaks away smiling, unable to contain how happy she feels. 

“I love you.”

Harry beams at her before kissing Louis chastely. Louis takes her hand and leads her to the kitchen. 

“What should we do first?” Louis asks as she pours them each a glass of cold Ribena. “We can unpack your stuff and pop it in the wardrobe easy enough, but I want this flat to feel like yours as well.”

“Lou,” Harry says fondly. “We’ve been together forever, I practically lived here before officially moving in. It already feels like mine.”

Louis’ stomach swoops happily at that sentence. “I know, but we can still do things to make it _ours_. Like pick out new furniture, or china or _something_.”

“Tell you what,” Harry begins, reaching for the hem of her tank top. She pulls it up and off in one swift movement, leaving her perky, naked breasts on full display. “How about I contemplate that while you fuck me on this lovely island here?” She pats the countertop, giving Louis a purposeful look.

Louis’ pulse spikes. “I’m agreeable to that.”

Harry shoots her a dirty grin. “Thought you would be.”

“How do you want it?”

“Bend me over and fuck me,” Harry replies immediately. “Please.”

“Back in a moment then.” She disappears to her bedroom – _their_ bedroom – and hastily strips, leaving her clothes in a pile. She locates their favourite strap on, choosing a toy to attach to it before she secures it around her body. 

When she re-enters the kitchen, Harry’s legs are spread and she’s already leaning over the island on her elbows, completely naked. Louis steps up behind her, letting the toy nudge against Harry’s wet pussy. Harry wiggles her hips at Louis in a clear invitation. 

“C’mon,” Harry urges. Louis lines the toy up and pushes into Harry with one smooth thrust. Harry’s loud groan fills the kitchen. 

Louis sets a slow pace at first, knowing that it will drive Harry crazy. She angles the dildo so that it brushes against Harry’s g-spot with every thrust. She keeps one hand on Harry’s hip while the other strokes over the expanse of Harry’s lightly sweaty back. Her fingers brush over Harry’s tattoo, tracing over the words with a nail just to feel Harry shudder underneath her.

They’re soon both panting, Harry pushing back hard into Louis, seeking more friction. She dips her head and kisses the skin that she can reach from this angle, slowing her thrusting down a little bit. Harry shoves back with her hips again, trying to quicken the pace.

“Patience,” Louis whispers, letting her nails scrape lightly down Harry’s back, causing Harry to shake at the touch. 

“Pull my hair,” Harry says around a moan. 

“What?” Louis asks, slowing down, thinking she misheard Harry. 

“Pull my hair.”

Hesitantly, Louis gets her hand around Harry’s ponytail and tugs. The moan that spills from Harry’s lips is so loud that Louis is thankful that she doesn’t have neighbours who will hear them. She keeps her hand in Harry’s hair, tugging again until Harry’s back is flush against Louis’ chest. She keeps thrusting as best as she can with the new angle and she lets her free hand drop between Harry’s legs, her fingers easily finding Harry’s swollen clit.

She rubs over it, enjoying the noises coming from Harry. Her fingers tighten in Harry’s hair again and Harry’s breath hitches as she orgasms, her entire body trembling with the force of it. Louis keeps rubbing over Harry’s clit until Harry slumps against her, completely spent. She kisses Harry’s neck and shoulder, letting her hands fall to rest on Harry’s hips again. 

“Stay,” Harry mumbles, her words clearly not coming out for her right now. 

Louis stays, keeping the toy inside of Harry until she’s ready. She strokes her hands over Harry’s torso, rubbing her nipples lightly just to hear the stuttered little breathy moans come from Harry as she does. She pinches them again once they’re hard and cheekily thrusts into Harry again. 

“ _Fuck_ ,” Harry moans, her head dropping forwards. She braces her arms on the island again, shifting so the dildo slips out of her. 

“Turn around, princess,” Louis whispers. Harry does so obediently. Louis cups her face and kisses her gently. “No sleeping until you’ve made me come.”

Harry nods and she sinks to her knees in front of Louis. She unclasps the strap-on from around Louis’ body, helping her step out of it before throwing it to the side. She looks up at Louis once before dipping her head forwards to kiss Louis’ pussy. The angle is a bit awkward at first, even as Louis spreads her legs, but she leans over onto the island and Harry settles in better, her tongue sweeping over Louis clit. It doesn’t take long before she’s a panting mess, her arms shaking with the force of holding herself up. She reaches down, tangling a hand in Harry’s hair, holding her in place as she orgasms. Harry moans against Louis’ pussy, tongue and mouth working her hard. 

She twitches as Harry pulls away, licking her lips of Louis’ wetness. She can’t help but duck down and kiss Harry hotly, sliding her tongue against Harry’s own, tasting herself in Harry’s mouth. 

“Fuck indeed,” Louis mumbles against Harry’s lips, making her smile. “C’mon, get up, we’ve still got to unpack your stuff yet.”

“Later,” Harry says as she gets up off the tiled floor. “I want to make you orgasm some more before that.”

Really, who is Louis to deny the requests of her irresistible fiancée?

~*~

“I want to try more BDSM stuff.”

Louis almost chokes on her cup of tea. It’s early. _Far_ too early to be thinking about any heavier sexual kinks that Harry has. She swallows thickly and sets her cup down on the table. 

“Uh,” she begins, blinking a few times, “like what, princess?”

“Like being tied up, nipple clamps, and I kind of want to see if I can go into subspace.”

“Subspace,” Louis repeats. “…Like in the space-time continuum?”

Harry giggles, shaking her head. “Not a science thing, like a sexual thing.”

It takes all of Louis’ strength not to sigh in frustration at herself. Of _course_ it wasn’t a science thing. “Can I do some research first? I want to know what I’m getting into here before we do anything, I don’t want to hurt you.”

Harry’s hand reaches across the table and she gently slips it into Louis’ own. “Take all of the time you need.”

“Thanks, love.”

“In the meantime, maybe we can change the guest room on this floor to be more accommodating to our BDSM scenes?”

It really is too early for this, Louis thinks, as she asks Harry exactly what she wants to put into the guest room. She opens her phone and makes a list of changes that need to be made, including having a reinforced bed frame made, and, for some reason that she’s bound to figure out soon, a Tally Ho chair. 

As Louis types out the list, she realises that she’s definitely become more vanilla with Harry in the last few months. She doesn’t mind it, of course, and she doesn’t think that Harry does either, but she needs to be certain. 

“Harry,” she begins when Harry stops talking. “Are you unhappy with our sex life?”

“No,” Harry replies. She’s being honest, at least, which warms Louis’ heart. “I just want to explore this side more. And it’ll be easier to do so if we have the things already set up, you know?”

Louis nods, tucking her hair behind her ear. “I get it,” she says. “I just want you to promise me that you’ll tell me if you’re unhappy. With anything. Sexually, romantically, with me, our relationship. _Anything_.”

“I’m incredibly happy, Lou,” Harry says emphatically. She gets up and walks around the table so that she’s standing in front of Louis. “ _Incredibly_ happy,” she repeats. She sits herself down on Louis’ lap and drapes her arms over Louis’ shoulders. Louis circles her arms around Harry’s waist, holding her loosely. 

“Me too, princess, me too.” Harry beams at her and kisses Louis soundly on the lips. She doesn’t know what she did to deserve such an amazing person in her life, let alone her future wife, but Louis thanks her lucky stars every single day.

“How about we look up some of these things online and order them?” Louis suggests when Harry starts kissing her neck. “We’re going to have to hire someone to come and put together this grid thingy safely. I don’t think I could ask Liam to come and put together a contraption that you want me to shackle you to and still look her in the eye at work the next day.”

Harry chuckles. “We’ll get it done. I’ll go get your laptop.”

While Harry is in the other room, Louis takes a few deep breaths. She enjoys sex with Harry, no matter what they happen to do together, even the kinkier stuff they’ve done. Especially the kinkier stuff they’ve done. She just can’t help but wonder if she’s cut out for all of this. She’s absolutely willing to give it a try, though. There’s nothing she wouldn’t do for Harry, this included, but it does worry her a bit that she won’t be able to fulfil Harry’s fantasies properly. 

It’ll take some time to research through everything, which means that Louis will be able to find her own comfort levels. She won’t push either of them into anything they’re not comfortable with, but this way they’ll be able to test their boundaries together. 

That thought makes Louis much more relieved. Harry walks back into the kitchen with Louis’ laptop and her black Amex in hand. She sets the laptop down on the table and sits herself back in Louis’ lap, smiling cheekily at her. 

Together, they work through the list on Louis’ phone of things they need and want for their explorations. By the time they’re done, Louis feels a little exhausted but even more turned on. There were some things they saw on the websites they visited that even she hadn’t thought of. Suddenly the thought of using a spreader bar on Harry makes Louis wetter than she ever considered. 

By the time they’ve finished, two hours has passed and Louis’ desperate for another cup of tea. She puts the kettle back on and wraps her arms around Harry’s waist, pulling her close while they wait for it to boil.

“What’s the one thing you want to do more than anything else? We’ll start with that when the stuff arrives.”

Harry sucks her bottom lip into her mouth, chewing on it while she thinks. She hums and a few moments later, she smiles. “I really want to see if I can get into subspace. I’ve read about it online and it’s really fascinating. A lot of the girls I’ve spoken to online about it said it’s one of the best feelings in the world. But I think we’d need to work up to it.”

“Yeah, we might have to,” Louis agrees. The kettle boils and she makes them both another cup of tea, letting hers sit to the side to brew properly. “I like the idea of the spreader bars,” she admits.

Harry’s face lights up. “Me too. We can start with that, then.”

Louis smiles at her and kisses her gently on the cheek. “It’s a deal.”

~*~

The first package arrives the next day. Harry opens it eagerly, ripping into the box like a kid on Christmas day. Louis isn’t sure which one was going to arrive first but she’s glad it’s not the Sybian that was ordered. Louis isn’t sure she’s mentally prepared for _that_ yet. And she definitely hasn’t had a chance to do much more research either.

“Want to try this?” Harry asks, pulling the spreader bar out of the box. She fiddles with the ankle cuffs and makes a happy noise. “This is really soft leather. Feel!” She shoves the object at Louis. Louis’ fingers automatically feel the leather and she has to pause to marvel at how soft it is. She guesses it needs to be for where it’s going to be on Harry’s body. 

“That is soft,” she agrees. She keeps it in her hand, turning it over and over until she’s satisfied with the weight. She then sees the extendable part and slides it to the full length. “Oh.” She collapses it back down, slightly in awe at just how long it actually got.

“Good ‘oh’ or bad ‘oh’, Lou?” Harry asks, reaching for the contraption. 

“A curious ‘oh’,” Louis admits. “I’m kind of interested to see how you want to use this.”

“I want to try it with orgasm denial,” Harry says confidently. “It’ll keep me from touching myself, I think.”

“Alright,” Louis agrees. “How long do you want to be denied your orgasms?”

“Two days.”

Louis balks. “ _Two_ days? Why that long?”

Harry shrugs, turning the bar in her hands. “I want to see if I can. I’ve read that edging is really powerful and I want to try it. We’ve only done it a little bit during sex before and it’s always made my orgasms _fantastic_ , I want to see what they’re like after two days.”

“…Two days it is, then.”

Louis sets the now empty box to the side and takes the bar back off Harry. “I hope that last orgasm of yours was a memorable one because we start now.”

Harry’s eyes darken and her tongue darts out to lick her lips. “It was,” she replies. 

“Good. Now, take off your clothes and go lie on the bed.”

Harry moves quickly to comply, leaving Louis alone in their lounge room. She tidies up the packaging and puts the empty box in the kitchen for recycling before joining Harry in their room. 

“Good girl,” Louis praises when she sees Harry waiting for her. 

She crosses the room and climbs onto the bed. She fastens one ankle in the first cuff and secures it, tugging on it to make sure that it isn’t going to come undone. She repeats the action with the other ankle and leaves the bar at the shortest length first. 

“I think there should be a reward here if you can go two days without orgasming,” Louis says as she shifts off the bed. She faces Harry as she takes off her shirt and trousers, keeping their gazes firmly locked. 

“What kind of reward?” Harry asks.

Louis hums, pondering exactly what she’s bargaining for. “Well, if you lose, then you get orgasms, so that’s your reward.”

“And if I win?” Harry asks, a teasing tone to her voice. 

“You get to pick what and where my first tattoo will go.”

Harry’s eyes go wide. “Really?”

Louis nods. “Really.”

“Deal,” Harry says, pleased. “I’m going to win this just for that.”

“Game on, princess.”

The look that crosses Harry’s face is a mixture between excitement and trepidation. Louis slides off the bed and opens one of the drawers of sex toys they have. 

“We should set some ground rules,” Louis says. “Like I can’t keep going until you _do_ orgasm, because that’s cheating.”

Harry nods. “Agreed.”

“And if you say to stop, I will stop.” Louis picks up a vibrator and sets it on the bed. “But anything else goes, yeah?”

“Yeah,” Harry says, licking her lips. “Safe word is still in play.”

“Always, princess.” She sets out a few items on top of the bedside drawers for easy access before climbing back on the bed next to Harry. 

She leans over and kisses Harry slowly at first, gently exploring her mouth. Harry squirms against her, trying to get closer but the bar is stopping her. Louis lets her hand make its way down Harry’s body, caressing over her soft skin, stopping every so often to let her fingers ghost up and down, making Harry shiver. 

The uptick in Harry’s breath lets Louis know that things are going her way. She traces one finger around Harry’s nipple, feeling it harden beneath her touch. She repeats the action on the other, rolling it between her fingers and tugging it until Harry is squirming underneath her. 

Louis breaks the kiss, moving down Harry’s jaw and sucking on the sweet spot on Harry’s neck that has her moans filling the room. At one particularly loud moan, Louis slips her fingers between Harry’s legs and rubs her clit. 

“ _Fuck_.”

She smiles and pulls away from Harry’s neck, moving to kiss her again. Harry ruts against Louis’ hand, wiggling until Louis has the perfect pressure on her clit. Her hands are all over Louis, up and down her back, fisting in her hair as she squirms under Louis’ actions.

“Stop,” she says breathlessly. Louis immediately stops. She lifts her hand from between Harry’s legs and locks her gaze with Harry’s as she sucks on her fingers. Harry’s lips part and her tongue darts out. Louis winks at her.

She sits back and takes off her underwear, levelling the playing field. Harry sits up as best as she can and cups Louis’ breasts in her hands, her thumbs immediately rubbing her nipples until they’re straining. She closes her mouth over one, nipping and licking while Louis moans at the action. 

Harry’s hand moves between Louis’ legs and she gently parts Louis’ folds, slipping a finger inside of her. She crooks it and Louis bucks forwards, leaning heavily into Harry. 

“Right there,” she breathes. Harry grins at her and kisses her hotly, working her fingers inside of Louis just perfectly. Her orgasm hits her sooner than she thought it would, breathing harshly as she rides through it. 

A twinge of pleasure goes through her as Harry lifts her fingers to her lips and sucks them clean of Louis’ wetness. She pushes Harry back on the bed and lifts her legs with the bar. She extends it to its complete length and Harry gasps at the sudden change. 

Louis picks up a vibrator and turns it on. She holds the bar with one hand, keeping Harry’s legs upright while she gently rests the vibrator against Harry’s pussy. She turns it on the lowest setting and it happily buzzes to life. She uses the toy to part Harry’s folds and just lets it rest snugly against her clit and between her labia. 

The toy sits perfectly for a good few minutes until Harry starts to squirm ever so slightly. Her breathing grows heavier and Louis takes the toy away until it returns to normal. She slides the vibrator into Harry’s pussy and turns it on its highest setting.

“Holy fuck!” Harry exclaims, her hands going into her hair and holding on tightly. She reaches a hand between her legs and rubs at her clit for a few moments before Louis bats her hand away. 

“No touching,” she commands softly. 

Harry whines loudly. Louis takes the toy out, turns it off, and sets it aside. She lowers Harry’s legs to the bed and lets her catch her breath. Louis rubs over Harry’s clit with her thumb a few times just to see Harry writhe against the bed. She leans over and presses a kiss to Harry’s swollen clit before moving up the bed to be face to face.

Once Harry’s breathing is back under control again, Louis picks up the lubricant and coats her index and middle fingers. 

“You’re going to kill me with this, aren’t you?” Harry asks dazedly. 

“Of course not, angel,” Louis replies innocently. “We can stop any time you like.”

Harry seems to have an internal debate before resolutely shaking her head. “No. I want to keep going. I want to make you come at least once more before leaving this bed.”

Louis grins at her. “I don’t plan on leaving until I do.”

Their lips meet again in smaller kisses to start with, slowly deepening. Louis carefully spreads Harry’s butt cheeks and strokes her middle finger around her entrance. She gently pushes passed the tight ring of muscle until her finger is completely inside of Harry. 

“Fuck, Lou,” Harry breathes against Louis’s lips. “Fuck.”

“Relax, princess,” Louis whispers back, her hand stilling until Harry gets used to the sensation. “I just want to stretch you enough for your princess plug, okay?” Harry nods and relaxes against the bed. 

Louis makes quick work of working her open enough to slide Harry’s favourite princess plug into place. It fits snugly between her cheeks, glinting in the light of the bedroom. Louis gets up off the bed and heads to the bathroom to wash her hands. 

Leaving Harry alone while she’s like this is only going to prolong the excitement so Louis takes her time. By the time she joins Harry back on the bed, Harry is gripping at the bedsheets tightly and panting heavily.

“Touch me, please,” Harry begs. “Please, Lou, just touch me.”

Louis grabs the bar and uses it to force Harry’s body down the bed. She keeps Harry’s legs up in the air for a few moments, her feet dangling uselessly. She picks up the vibrator again and turns it on its lowest setting and slips just the tip inside of Harry’s pussy. Harry lets out a choked gasp and covers her face with her hands. 

All of this teasing is almost certainly going to bring Harry to orgasm soon, Louis just knows it. She moves so she’s between Harry’s upright legs and lowers her mouth to Harry, licking a fat stripe right over her clit.

Harry screams, her hands flying down to hold Louis’ head in place as she ruts against Louis’ mouth. 

“Fuck, fuck, fuck!” Harry sobs. 

Louis turns the vibrator up onto the next setting, pushing it deeper into Harry. She draws Harry’s clit into her mouth, sucking on it hard.

“No! Stop! Apples! Apples!” Harry’s voice is wrecked but Louis still stops. She pulls away completely and Harry sobs, whether from the loss or the relief, Louis isn’t sure.

“I’ve had enough.”

“Alright.” Louis removes the vibrator and turns it off. She lowers Harry’s legs to the bed and unshackles them, dropping the spreader bar to the floor. Harry moans as she closes her legs, her fingers digging into her thighs as she tries not to touch herself.

“I… I don’t think I can, Louis,” Harry mumbles. 

Wordlessly, Louis pulls Harry into her arms, curling herself completely around her fiancée. “Don’t think you can what, sweetheart?”

“Everything,” Harry mumbles against Louis’ chest. “Not orgasm, give _you_ an orgasm. I don’t think I can do it.”

Louis makes a shushing sound. “But you did it, angel. You didn’t orgasm, just like you wanted to.”

Harry looks up at her, a little bit of awe on her face. “I did, didn’t I?”

Louis nods and kisses her gently on the lips. “You did. And don’t worry about giving me an orgasm, I’ll masturbate and you can watch.”

“I love you.”

“I love you too.”

~*~

If going without orgasms was easy for Harry, then Louis should have placed money on it. She goes from happy with herself and her achievement, to grumpy as hell within twenty-four hours. Louis knows that it’s just because she’s determined to see this task through, to win, for whatever reason, but it’s wearing on her nerves just a little bit.

More of the sex toys they ordered arrive, and Harry both wants to try them all out at once and also doesn’t want anything to do with them. Which Louis gets, because she knows how much Harry enjoys orgasms when it comes to sex. Despite the fact that Louis has told her _multiple_ times that sex doesn’t always have to equal orgasms. But she’s young and has a great sex drive.

Either way, when this is over, Harry will have had orgasms and Louis will either end up with a tattoo or not. Which, of course, Harry will tell her nothing about what she has planned for her, the minx. What she hasn’t told Harry is that since Harry got her own, Louis has been planning to get one, she just has been torn between a few ideas – so this will make it easier for her. 

She finishes up the work in her office and closes her laptop with a satisfied noise. She makes her way through the house to find Harry, eventually locating her upstairs in one of the bedrooms they use for Louis’ sisters. She’s vigorously vacuuming the floor, a frown on her face. She doesn’t hear Louis call out her name at all, so Louis turns the vacuum off at the wall. 

Harry whips around, her skirt twirling as she does. It’s a very short skirt and Louis subconsciously licks her lips. 

“You turned off the vacuum. I’m busy here.”

“Let’s go out,” Louis says. “Or let me give you an orgasm so you’re not so grumpy.”

Harry harrumphs, putting one hand on her hip. “I don’t _want_ an orgasm. I want to _win_.”

“Baby,” Louis says, trying for a soothing tone. “You’ve lasted more than twenty four hours already! That’s pretty great. You should be proud.”

“No,” Harry says, shaking her head. “I want to go forty eight hours just to prove that I can.”

“Alright,” Louis concedes. “Then did you want to go out? We can go out for lunch somewhere nice and just walk around. Maybe go on a picnic?”

Harry perks up. “A picnic?” she repeats and Louis nods. 

“I got some fresh fruit from the market yesterday that would go great in a picnic.”

Harry smiles brilliantly. “I like the sound of that. C’mon, let’s go get it ready.”

Louis grins, shaking her head to herself as she follows Harry downstairs to the kitchen. 

Once their food is all prepared, Louis gets the new picnic basket out of storage. She had purchased it a few months ago, just waiting for the weather to warm up so they could do this together. It’s something she’s been looking forward to for a while. 

They load up Harry’s car and drive to a park of Harry’s choosing. Soon, they’re setting up under a large tree, laying out a red and black chequered blanket on the ground. 

“It’s so lovely out here,” Harry comments, lifting her sunglasses onto the top of her head. “We used to come to this park all of the time when I was a kid. I’d beg Gemma for ages to push me on the swings.”

Louis glances around, seeing plenty of happy faces near the swing sets and she can just imagine what Harry was like as a child wanting her turn, too. 

It also reminds her of Doncaster when she was growing up. Before Lottie came along, Louis was the only child and had free reign of the swings without having to worry about other siblings also wanting a turn. And when Lottie was old enough to go on the swings by herself, Louis was always more than happy to push her, feeling somewhat responsible for her young sister. 

The swings bring back a lot of happy memories for Louis. It warms her inside to know that kids are still able to enjoy them.

Harry interrupts her thoughts by placing a paper plate in front of her. “You alright, Lou?” she asks as she passes Louis a sandwich.

Louis nods, slipping her sunglasses on top of her head, too. “I am. I love it out here.”

“Me too.” Harry leans over and kisses her swiftly on the lips. “Let’s eat and maybe after we can go feed the ducks?”

“That sounds lovely.”

They get comfortable, sitting mostly in silence as they people-watch while they eat. Every now and then, they comment on something they’ve seen, especially when a brave duck gets too close to one family and quacks loudly. 

It’s times like this that Louis wishes they had their own kids already to share this with. She thinks that she could borrow Doris and Ernest from her mum and achieve the same result, too.

“I should’ve brought a footie with me,” Louis comments, watching a couple of older kids kick a football ball back and forth between them. 

“Next time you’ll have to remember,” Harry replies, sipping at her drink. 

Louis wraps an arm around Harry’s middle and squeezes her hip. “Next time we’ll invite Niall and Zayn, too.”

“Niall will kick your arse, just so you know.”

Louis scoffs. “I doubt that. I’ll make Liam come then. Soph and Willow can watch from the sidelines while Payno and I kick Niall and Zayn’s arses.”

A giggle escapes Harry. 

“What?” Louis asks, slightly affronted.

“Nothing,” Harry says with a wave of her hand. “Your tough talk is cute.”

“I’ll show you tough,” Louis mutters as she half-tackles Harry to the ground, being careful of the food still in her hands. Harry squawks and laughs as she flails under Louis. 

“Fine, fine. You’re the toughest,” Harry concedes, smiling all the while.

“I am,” Louis sniffs. She kisses Harry chastely before sitting up and pulling Harry up with her. She playfully knocks her shoulder into Harry’s and winks at her before finishing off her own food. 

Once she’s finished eating, Harry lies back, the skirt of the dress she changed into riding up her thighs ever so slightly. Louis’ hand automatically gravitates to Harry’s leg, stroking lightly up and down it.

“We should go for that walk before you fall asleep,” Louis says, walking her fingers down to Harry’s knee. 

“Five more minutes? I left the duck food in the car.”

Louis hums her agreement. 

Harry wriggles on the blanket and gets herself comfortable, resting her head on Louis’ thigh. She puts her sunglasses back on her face and Louis does the same. She cards her fingers through Harry’s hair, massaging her scalp just how she knows Harry likes. 

Within minutes, Harry has fallen asleep. Louis puts her phone onto silent and takes a few photos of Harry, smiling as she flicks through them. She sends a snapchat to Niall of Harry sleeping and gets back a photo of Zayn doing the exact same. They trade a few more snapchats, Louis taking photos of the scenery and commenting that next time Niall and Zayn should come along so they can play footie together, too. Niall immediately sends back her agreement. 

After a few more minutes, Harry doesn’t show any sign of waking up so Louis awkwardly reaches into the picnic basket, trying not to disturb Harry as she moves. She grabs a paperback book that she had popped in there just for this reason and opens it to her scrap of paper bookmark. 

More than an hour passes before Harry wakes up, nuzzling her face into Louis’ thigh. She hums and smacks her lips as she slowly wakes up. Louis lets her hand drop into Harry’s hair again, rubbing her scalp a little. 

“That feels nice,” Harry mumbles, turning her face further into Louis’ thigh. “How long was I asleep?”

“A while,” Louis replies. She finds her paper bookmark and places it where she’s at, setting the book down on the blanket. “Did you want to take that walk now?”

“Mmhmm,” Harry murmurs, making no effort to move. 

Louis shakes her head, smiling to herself. She slips her book back into the picnic basket and starts packing up their things. Predictably, Harry doesn’t move. Louis keeps going until all she has left to pack up is the picnic blanket. 

“C’mon, sleeping beauty, let’s go feed some ducks.”

~*~

An alarm goes off, startling Louis out of her book. She looks up to see Harry burst into the lounge room and pluck the book from Louis’ hands. She sits herself down in Louis’ lap all without saying a word to her. Her hands go to Harry’s waist, holding her steady and she looks up at Harry, waiting for an explanation.

When one isn’t forthcoming, Louis opens her mouth to speak but Harry’s lips meet her own, kissing her slowly. She promptly forgets what she was going to ask in favour of kissing Harry back. 

“I win,” Harry whispers. 

“Mmhmm,” Louis mumbles against Harry’s lips. She’s not exactly sure what Harry is referring to at that moment, but she doesn’t care. 

“It’s been forty eight hours.”

Louis breaks away from the kiss. “Has it?” she asks. Harry nods, dipping her head to kiss Louis again, knocking Louis’ glasses askew as she does. 

“Orgasms now, please.”

Louis huffs a laugh and takes her glasses off, setting them on top of her discarded book. “Just a minute.” Harry gives her an impatient look and Louis squeezes her hips. “A deal is a deal, princess. Where do you want me to get my first tattoo?”

Harry’s eyes light up with excitement. “Here.” She traces her finger over the soft skin of Louis’ inner upper arm. “You’ll be able to cover it up if you need to, and I’ll know it’s there every time I look at these amazing arms of yours.” She squeezes Louis’ biceps for emphasis. 

At the mention of her arms, Louis wraps them around Harry a little tighter. “Yeah?” 

Harry’s eyes darken and her tongue darts out to lick her lips. “Yeah.”

With a soft grunt, Louis stands, keeping Harry’s legs around her middle as best as she can. She heads for the bedroom, where there are suitcases taking up most of the floor space and items all over their bed. She sets Harry down on a patch that is free of clutter and despite knowing she’ll regret it later, she pushes off everything on the bed to the floor. 

“Get naked and put your hands above your head.”

Harry is quick to comply. Louis locates their new wrist restraints, securing each cuff around Harry’s wrists before tying her to the headboard. Harry looks up at her hands and tugs at them, nodding in satisfaction. 

“What about my legs?” Harry asks innocently. 

“Hmm, you’re right,” Louis replies. She finds the matching ankle restraints and fits a cuff around each ankle before spreading Harry’s legs and securing them to the ends of the bed with the long tie. Harry wriggles in the middle of the bed, star-fished. 

Louis leaves her like that on the bed, stepping into the bathroom to wash her hands thoroughly. She can hear Harry squirming on the bed in anticipation, so she purposefully takes longer.

When she re-enters the bedroom, she can see Harry’s wet pussy on display, her legs splayed wide with nowhere to go but to stay open.

“So I have been doing some research,” Louis begins. “Not a lot, but I’m getting there.” She crosses the room until she’s level with the bed. “And I’ve got some ideas about how to keep up _this_ side of our sex life while we’re on holiday.”

Predictably, Harry perks up at that. “Yeah?” 

Louis nods, climbing up on the bed between Harry’s legs. She trails her fingers ever so lightly up Harry’s bare legs. “Yeah,” she echoes. 

Goosebumps break out on Harry’s skin, following where Louis touches her. She can smell Harry’s arousal in the air. It makes her dizzy with desire. She reaches up to run her hands over Harry’s stomach and chest, circling a finger around each nipple. She closes her mouth around one, sucking on it until it’s straining underneath her tongue. She pulls back, blowing cold air on it. Harry whimpers at the action. She knows that Harry will expect her to do the same to the other nipple, so she purposefully doesn’t.

“What do you want to try?” Louis asks, leaning over Harry’s body, still fully clothed herself. Her hair falls to the side, creating a curtain around them. 

Harry bites down on her bottom lip, legs trying to close to no avail. Louis dips her head, kissing Harry with the softest of kisses, barely letting their lips touch. 

“Talk to me, princess,” Louis whispers. “I can’t give you what you want unless you tell me what it is.”

As if overwhelmed by the possibility, Harry whimpers, legs squirming underneath her. Louis smiles at her, sitting back. She runs her hands over Harry’s tummy, down her hips and squeezes at her thighs as she shifts back. 

“This pussy of yours is looking pretty wet,” she continues, despite Harry’s silence. “Do you want me to lick it?” She shifts, dipping her head like she’s going to eat Harry out but presses a kiss to her pubic mound before pulling back. “Or do you want me to put my fingers in there?” She runs her hands over Harry’s inner thighs, squeezing harder and moving higher. 

Harry just whimpers.

“I need an answer, Harry.”

“I _can’t_ think,” Harry finally gets out.

“Well,” Louis begins, running her hands up Harry’s thighs again. “Keep in mind that we’re going to be travelling tomorrow. So you need to take that into consideration if you want me to fuck you raw.”

Harry nods. “Maybe just the vibrator, then?”

“Is that what you really want?”

A few moments pass.

Harry shakes her head. “No.”

“Tell me what you _really_ want.”

Harry’s tongue darts out to lick her lips. “I want you to fuck me until I don’t remember my name.”

Louis leans over Harry and kisses her hotly. “I think I can work with that, princess.”

Harry squirms, trying to touch Louis but the restraints stop her. Louis gets up off the bed, undressing completely. She pulls out their trusty strap-on but chooses a thicker dildo to put in it. If Harry wants to forget her name, she’s going to do everything she can to help that happen.

She secures the strap-on around her body and then fishes out the little bullet vibrator, twisting the base to make sure that the batteries are still working. She turns it off and sits it on the bed. She reaches into the drawer and pulls out another item, this one is new to them, and something Harry had requested the other day when they ordered things. 

“Ball gag?” Louis offers, showing the pastel pink ball to Harry who nods. Louis fastens it around her head, slipping the ball into Harry’s waiting mouth. “Can you spit it out if you need to?”

Harry nods. 

“Good,” Louis replies. “I know it’s got air holes, but I want you to be able to get it out of your mouth if you’re struggling.”

Harry nods again and Louis climbs back on the bed once more. She picks up a pillow and instructs Harry to lift her hips so she can slide it under there, making it a bit more comfortable. Louis then slicks up the dildo with some lubricant and lets the head nudge against Harry’s pussy. She looks up at Harry and watches Harry’s eyes widen and her face go slack as the toy slides inside of her. Louis stills completely, letting Harry get used to the size of the dildo. 

As she shifts to pick up the vibrator, Harry moans loudly, the sound slightly muffled by the gag in her mouth. Louis rocks her hips again just to elicit that reaction from Harry once more. She turns on the vibrator and runs it over each of Harry’s nipples, watching them strain against the action until they’re completely erect. She trails it down Harry’s tummy, over her pubic mound and switches it onto the lowest setting before running it over Harry’s clit a few times. Harry’s body jerks with the action, her vagina clenching tighter around the toy buried inside of her. 

Louis turns the vibrator off and sets it to the side. She shifts, the toy slipping out of Harry as she does. She’s enjoying the way that Harry can’t do anything but lie there and wriggle. Louis guides it until just the head is inside of Harry. Her pussy is stretched around the bright blue toy, fluttering with every single movement Louis makes. She moves back slowly inside of Harry, absolutely hypnotised by it. Harry never ceases to amaze her. 

She leans over onto her arms, her hair falling around them once more. She moves her hips, the toy sliding almost all of the way out of Harry before Louis slams forwards, pushing Harry up the bed as she does. Harry’s eyes roll back and she moans around the gag in her mouth. Her noises spur Louis on, thrusting into Harry at a steady pace. 

Harry struggles against her bindings, her hands clenching and opening as she does, clearly wanting to touch Louis but is unable to. Louis kisses along Harry’s jaw, nipping at the sensitive spots that she knows are on Harry’s neck. She nips at a few of the spots, enjoying the whimpers coming from Harry with every scrape of her teeth.

When Harry’s breathing changes, indicating that she’s close to orgasming, Louis stops moving completely. She keeps the dildo inside of Harry, resting on her arms above her until Harry stops squirming. Their eyes lock and Louis thrusts forwards, just to see Harry’s eyes flutter closed. 

She dips her head and kisses Harry’s cheeks, unable to kiss her properly with the gag in the way. She picks up the pace, thrusting into Harry faster and faster until Harry is a squirming mess underneath her. Only to stop again.

Harry lets out a broken whimper, her legs flailing with the need to close properly. 

Struck by an idea, Louis moves back until the toy slides out of Harry completely. Her vagina flutters, clenching around nothing. Louis picks up the vibrator and turns it onto the lowest setting again. She teases it in Harry’s wet opening, letting it get slick before she moves it up, resting it just over Harry’s clit to tease her some more. Harry’s whimpers fill the room. Her body arches into the touch, seeking release. 

But Louis turns it off just as Harry’s breathing changes again. Harry growls around her gag, shooting daggers at Louis who just smiles beatifically at her.

Once Harry’s breathing is back under control, Louis rubs her hands over Harry’s thighs, squeezing every so often. She lowers her head, the scent of Harry is almost overwhelming her, luring her in. There’s almost nothing that Louis wants more than to just bury her face in Harry’s pussy and eat her out until she’s coming over Louis’ tongue, but Harry wants to forget her name. And Louis isn’t one to back down from challenge. 

She nips at Harry’s soft thighs, peppering them with little love bites that will fade before the day is over. The closer she gets to Harry’s pussy, the more Harry whimpers. She lets her tongue dip into Harry once, almost overpowered by the taste, but she finds the strength to turn away, focusing on other parts of Harry’s body. 

She kisses across Harry’s stomach, her lips dragging against the soft skin. She noses Harry’s belly button before continuing upwards. Harry’s nipples are still standing at attention, begging for Louis’ mouth to be on them. She tugs one with her teeth, the other with her fingers, drinking in the noises that are spilling from Harry. 

The toy nudges against Harry’s pussy again and Louis guides it back into her. Harry’s moans grow louder with every small movement Louis makes and she figures that it’s time to let Harry orgasm.

Louis keeps her thrusts steady, not increasing the speed as Harry’s breathing changes. Her legs squirm against their restraints, but Louis just keeps up the pace. She lets her hand drop between their bodies and she teases Harry’s clit with every thrust of the dildo inside of her.

Harry whines high and her hips move of their own accord as she orgasms. Louis keeps her gaze on Harry’s face, watching the emotions flicker across it like a story. She thrusts inside of Harry until Harry whimpers and wriggles away from the contact. 

Louis lets the toy slip out of her and unclasps the straps, letting it fall to the floor. She quickly pulls out the ball gag and unties Harry’s arms and legs, letting her have use of them again. Harry curls into herself, rubbing at her wrists. Louis immediately pulls Harry into her arms, rubbing her hands up and down Harry’s back.

“You did so good, princess,” Louis whispers to her. She keeps whispering compliments and praise to Harry, hoping that she’s reassuring her in all of the good ways that she’s meant to. 

Harry shifts, tucking her head underneath Louis’ chin. “I love you.”

Relieved, Louis smiles. “I love you too.” She helps Harry under the covers, pulling the blankets around them comfortably. 

“That was really… _wow_ , Lou.” Harry says after a few long moments. 

“Forget your own name ‘wow’ or…?”

Harry’s little giggle makes Louis’ heart sing. “Yeah, that kind of wow.”

“Good,” Louis replies. She kisses the top of Harry’s head, the tip of her nose, and then her lips softly. “I love you so much. I’m so proud of you.”

Harry gives her a sleepy smile. “You’re the best.”

She falls asleep after a few more moments, Louis’ fingers in her hair, massaging her scalp. 

Louis shifts so they’re a little more comfortable and tries not to think about how sore Harry is going to be tomorrow for their flight.

~*~

Their first stop is Paris. Because it _has_ to be.

There are so many fond memories Louis has of Paris, and she knows that Harry does too. They’ve got two whole weeks in the _city of love_ – probably the best way to start off their three month engagement holiday. Louis is just excited to spend as much time travelling and seeing new things with Harry. Seeing all of this through her eyes is probably the best experience that Louis could ever have. 

The fact that Harry is as excited about all of the travelling they have organised makes Louis just as excited. 

Their first stop after they checked into their L’Hotel apartment suite was to stop at the first patisserie they found and eat as much as they could in one sitting. It had been worth the stomach ache, Louis thinks.

On their second night, Louis books them a table at the Eiffel Tower restaurant and she spends the evening with Harry’s hand on her thigh, creeping upwards until Louis is certain that they’re going to be caught and kicked out for public indecency. 

“You’re such a bad girl,” Louis says once they’re back in their suite after dinner. 

Harry shoots her an innocent grin. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.” She doesn’t take her gaze off Louis’ as she takes out her hoop earrings. She sets them aside and then unzips her dress, letting it pool at her feet. Louis had forgotten that Harry hadn’t worn underwear out. Again. It’s the second time this week that she’s done that and just the thought of it is enough to drive Louis a little insane.

“I am going to go shower. Feel free to join me.”

Louis hastily undresses, following Harry into the bathroom. She steps into the stall behind Harry, wrapping her arms around Harry’s middle. She kisses the soft skin of Harry’s shoulder, letting her lips linger there for a few moments.

“I think,” Louis begins slowly, her lips moving up towards Harry’s neck. “I think that I should give you a spanking for being such a bad girl tonight.”

Harry’s breath hitches and she pushes her arse back into Louis. “In this hotel? Where people can hear us?”

Louis hums. “You’ll just have to keep quiet, won’t you?” She loosens her hold on Harry and reaches for the body wash, squirting some into her hands. She lathers it up and starts to wash Harry’s back, lingering on all of the sensitive spots just to tease her. She presses her thumbs into the dips of Harry’s spine, trailing outwards until she’s cupping Harry’s arse in her hands. She squeezes slightly and Harry gasps, pushing back into Louis’ hands. 

“I can keep quiet,” Harry promises. 

“Good.” Louis drops her hands and turns Harry in her arms. “Because if you can’t keep quiet, we’ll have to use a gag again.”

Harry’s eyes darken at the mention, but she still nods. “I’ll be quiet.”

“Good,” Louis repeats. She kisses Harry soundly on the lips before finishing washing herself. 

Once they’ve left the bathroom, Louis instructs Harry to climb onto the bed on her knees. She complies and Louis picks up one of the many pillows, stripping it of its pillowcase. 

“What’s that for?” Harry asks. 

“Arms behind your back at your sides and make fists,” Louis orders. “This is a make-shift binding because this bed doesn’t have a headboard I can cuff you too properly.”

Harry puts her arms behind her back, her hands clenched into fists. Louis slips the pillow case over her arms, up to her shoulders before she gently manoeuvres Harry’s arms so her elbows are bent. She rolls the pillowcase down until she has a firm hold of it and so Harry is also properly restrained.

“ _Oh_ ,” Harry says. “I like this.”

Louis grins at her and kisses her cheek. “Good. Now, count them out and remember to keep the noise down. There are other guests on this floor.”

The first smack is light but swift, and echoes a little through the room.

“One,” Harry groans, her head dropping down against the mattress. 

Once Louis has Harry’s arse ready for harder spankings, she does three in succession, just to hear Harry’s breathy moans from where her forehead is pressed against the mattress. She’s quick to count out the spanks, and keeps true to her word about remaining as quiet as possible. 

“Do you want to stop yet?” Louis asks. 

“No,” Harry pants. “I can do a couple more.”

“Alright.” Louis rubs her hand over the red flesh of Harry’s arse cheeks and delivers another spank. Harry groans, her eyes closed completely. The number falls from her lips and Louis decides that it’s enough. She slips the pillow case off Harry’s arms and tosses it to the floor among their discarded clothes. She gets up off the bed and grabs the soothing lotion from her bag, spreading it over Harry’s backside. 

“You did really well, baby,” Louis says as she rubs in the lotion. She keeps praising Harry, enjoying the look of contentment that crosses Harry’s face. She finishes and sets the bottle aside, kissing her way up Harry’s naked back. 

“I’m so proud of you,” she whispers in Harry’s ear, pushing her hair out of her face. Harry immediately curls into Louis’ side, wrapping her arms around Louis as best as she can. She kisses Harry soundly on the lips, feeling Harry relax completely against her. 

Louis strokes along Harry’s back, just listening to Harry breathe. She falls off to sleep a few moments later, which Louis expected. She pulls the covers up around their bodies so that Harry is as comfortable and warm as possible.

Unfortunately, Louis is still too wound up to go to sleep. She carefully removes herself from Harry’s arms and leaves her in bed. She wraps her robe around her body and picks up her glasses and Kindle, heading onto the terrace. It’s a beautiful night, warm enough that Louis doesn’t need a blanket out here. She sets her Kindle down on the table and gets comfortable in a chair, using the other one to put her feet up. She picks up her e-reader, settling in to read for a little while before sleep claims her.

Before Louis knows it, she’s read a third of the book she’s on. She bites back a yawn, her eyes straining in the dim light of the outside lamp. She flicks the off button on the Kindle and takes her glasses off, rubbing her eyes. She’s definitely tired enough for sleep now.

Which is, of course, why Harry wakes up when Louis climbs into bed next to her.

“Why’re you cold?” Harry mumbles, her voice thick with sleep. She blinks up at Louis who shushes her and presses a kiss to her lips. 

“Go to sleep, princess,” Louis whispers, rubbing her hands up and down Harry’s back in the familiar soothing gesture.

“I’m awake now, Mrs Cold Feet,” Harry teases, shifting so her arms slide loosely around Louis’ middle. “Can I go down on you?”

Louis can’t help but grin at the politeness of the question. “I’d love you to.”

Harry beams at her and kisses Louis chastely before kissing down her body. Louis feels instantly warm, Harry’s lips scorching hot against her cool skin. Harry hums softly to herself as she bites at Louis’ hips, nipping everywhere that she can. She parts Louis’ legs like she’s a gift and settles between them. 

Her lips trail up Louis’ inner thighs, getting closer and closer to her pussy only to move away completely. Really, Louis should have expected Harry to tease her after the spanking she took earlier. This is Harry’s little way of getting her back. 

When her mouth closes over Louis’ pussy, she sees stars. It never fails to amaze her just how good sex with Harry is. Harry eats pussy like a champ – something Louis feels proud for teaching her. She knows _exactly_ how to tease and how to please Louis and it’s something she uses to her advantage whenever she eats Louis out. 

Louis shifts her hips, rutting down into Harry’s mouth. Harry pulls back enough that Louis lets out a frustrated growl at the loss. She’s quick to get her mouth back on Louis, though, using her tongue to tease Louis until she’s right on the edge. 

“There,” Louis breathes. “Right there, baby.”

Harry hums again, pressing her mouth harder against Louis. Her tongue flicks at her clit as two of her fingers slide into Louis’ vagina, crooking _just_ so as they do. That’s all it takes for Louis to orgasm, her moans filling the room. She keeps one hand buried in Harry’s hair, the other clutching the sheets underneath her. She rides out her orgasm on Harry’s tongue and falls against the bed, completely spent. 

“ _Fuck_.”

Harry makes her way back up Louis’ body, peppering kisses wherever she sees fit. She snuggles herself into Louis’ arms, curling around her. 

Louis turns her head and kisses Harry properly, sliding her tongue against Harry’s, tasting herself in Harry’s mouth. 

Wordlessly, Louis shifts until Harry is on her back, kissing her the entire time. After so long together, they’re completely in sync. Harry’s legs splay wide open and Louis smiles down at her before shifting down the bed. She places feather light kisses on all of Harry’s nipples, making her squirm at the attention. Louis purposefully lets her teeth graze against Harry’s tattoo, pressing ever so slightly against the ink just to hear Harry’s sharp intake of breath.

The scent of Harry is distractingly delicious, Louis thinks, as she settles between Harry’s legs. Her pussy glistens in the low light of the room. Louis licks her lips before licking a fat stripe from Harry’s entrance to her clit. Harry sighs and immediately ruts down, seeking more contact. 

Louis immediately indulges her, closing her eyes as she does. The taste of Harry is overwhelming. She can’t get enough. Harry’s legs fall open impossibly wide, her knees bent and her feet planted on the mattress, rocking into Louis’ mouth. 

She lets her thumb rub over Harry’s clit while she dips her tongue into Harry’s entrance, letting the wetness coat her tongue. Harry moans as Louis changes angles, keeping her hand tangled in Louis hair. 

“Please, Louis,” Harry begs. 

Louis slides two fingers into Harry, immediately searching out her g-spot. Harry whines high in her throat and pushes forcefully down against Louis’ hand. She crooks them inside of her and covers her mouth over Harry’s clit, sucking on the sensitive nub.

Harry moans loudly as she comes, her wetness soaking Louis’ fingers. “Fuck, _oh fuck!_ Yes!” 

Louis would smirk if her mouth wasn’t otherwise occupied. She doesn’t let up until Harry is a trembling mess underneath her, and even then she doesn’t move back until Harry is squirming against the pressure. She presses one last kiss to Harry’s clit and Harry hisses. She slowly slides her fingers out of Harry, watching as her vagina clenches around nothing. 

“You are amazing,” Louis says as she moves up Harry’s body. 

Harry makes grabby hands at her and pulls her close. Their kiss is hot and a little sloppy, but neither of them care. Harry’s hands slide into Louis’ hair, keeping their mouths together. She winds her legs around Louis’ middle, forcing Louis to rest her body on top of Harry’s own.

“I wish you could be inside of me all of the time.”

Louis waggles her eyebrows at that statement and Harry huffs a laugh, swatting Louis’ shoulder lightly.

“Not like _that_ ,” Harry says. “But yes, also like that. But I mean, sometimes I just want to squeeze you so tight until you’re inside of my chest.”

Louis’ nose crinkles as she grins. She dips her head down to kiss Harry softly on the lips. “I know what you mean. I feel that way about you every day.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah.”

Harry beams at her. “Good. Sleep now. Orgasms have made me tired.”

Louis snorts. “Anything you want, princess.”

Harry shifts so Louis is spooning her and she picks up Louis’ hand, bringing it to her lips so she can kiss it. “I love you.”

“I love you,” Louis echoes. She kisses the back of Harry’s head and settles down, letting the warmth of Harry surround her and lull her into a deep sleep.

~*~

Their days start off lazy, waking in each other’s arms, enjoying a delicious breakfast on their terrace that looks over the city. It’s breathtaking every single time Louis looks out at it. She just wants to _do_ everything all at once. There are so many things that she wants to see and do before she and Harry move onto their next destination. She really should have booked everything for longer. She just didn’t realise that she was going to fall so in love with Paris when they got there.

It’s after lunchtime when they’re walking over the Seine River towards the Arc de Triomphe. There’s nothing rushing them, so they take their time, walking hand in hand down the busy streets towards their destination. 

They stop every now and then to take photos of different things, or to pop into a shop that catches their eyes. Louis is so thankful that money talks because she’s able to get the majority of the stuff that she and Harry purchase delivered to their flat back in London. She’s sure that she’ll forget about more than half of the stuff they buy on their holiday, and it absolutely will be like Christmas when they get home, but that’s something for future Louis to think about and deal with. Present Louis is far too wrapped up in Harry, and the now, to think about any of that just yet.

The Arc de Triomphe is far more gorgeous in person. Louis stands, stunned. She had seen it as a teenager when she visited Paris on a small holiday with her family, but being so young, and self-absorbed, she didn’t appreciate it back then for what it was worth. 

A click of a camera startles Louis out of her reverie. She turns and sees Harry smiling down at the screen of her phone. 

“You look beautiful,” Harry comments easily. She shrugs one shoulder and kisses Louis on the cheek. “C’mon, let’s get a selfie.” They turn so that their back is to the monument and Harry stretches out her long arms, capturing them both on the screen along with the Arc de Triomphe in the background. 

“We should get married here,” Louis says as Harry lowers her arm. She almost drops her phone. 

“What?” Harry asks, blinking.

Louis nods. “We should get married here in Paris. The city of love, the first place where I promised to love you forever. It just… I… Yeah.”

Harry shakes her head, smiling. She throws her arms around Louis’ shoulders and kisses her soundly on the lips.

“Is that a yes?” 

“Yes that’s a yes,” Harry laughs, kissing Louis again. 

Louis sighs, relieved. It’s fitting, she thinks. There’s beautiful places in London that they can get married in, but this feels _right_. It’s not too far for their friends and family to travel to, and Louis is only too happy to foot the bill to make sure their loved ones are with them for their wedding. It’s perfect.

“C’mon, I want to get closer,” Harry says, pulling out of Louis’ hold. Louis is helpless to do anything other than follow her.

She takes a few photos, too, capturing the mesmerised look on Harry’s face as they get closer and closer. Louis doesn’t know how Harry manages to do it – to look at things with such awe and love. To pay sole attention to the thing in front of her while the rest of the world goes on by. It never fails to make Louis appreciate the little things more whenever she can.

Their feet are aching by the time they’ve done a loop around the Arc and Louis insists they have a cup of tea at a nearby café. She loves that there are so many places to choose from in Paris. Every single time they’ve gone out, they’ve eaten somewhere new, and the experiences have been absolutely delightful. She’s thankful that they’ve committed to walking as much as they can because all of the food is delicious in Paris and Louis _never_ wants to stop eating. 

They sit at an outside table at the café they chose and Louis rests her foot against Harry’s, just to see her smile. Harry sips at her frothy drink, getting a milk moustache for her troubles. She immediately takes a selfie and shows it to Louis, who leans over and kisses it off her lip. 

“Delicious,” she says low enough for only Harry to hear. 

Harry’s tongue darts out to lick her lips and she meets Louis’ gaze with an intensity that has Louis’ clit throbbing between her legs. 

The moment lasts for a few more beats before they’re interrupted by someone sitting at the table closest to theirs. Wordlessly, Louis turns back to her cup of tea and finishes it off. Today is going to be a long day, Louis thinks.

That night, after they’ve had dinner, Louis tells Harry that she has organised for them to see the cabaret of Moulin Rouge. Seeing Harry’s face light up when she tells her makes Louis’ heart sing with happiness. They get all dressed up and take a bunch of selfies to remember the occasion.

Harry babbles excitedly as they enter the venue and are shown to their table. Louis nods at their server who pops their champagne and pours two glasses for them. She sips at hers, leaning into Harry a little as she does. 

“I’ve heard this is quite the experience,” Louis comments.

The entire show is spectacular. It’s completely captivating and Louis is so glad that she and Harry get to experience it together.

At one memorable moment, Harry leans closer to Louis and whispers “I’m such a lesbian” and honestly, Louis agrees with her. She isn’t immune to the skimpy outfits and the semi-nudity of the girls dancing on the stage. It leaves her more than a little hot under the collar. 

The sex she and Harry have following the show is pretty spectacular too.

~*~

Ice cream drips down Louis’ fingers, undoubtedly staining the ground beneath her feet with a sticky mess. She licks her own ice cream cone, waiting for Harry to finish using the public restroom and join her outside again.

Harry appears moments later, looking a little flustered, slinging her handbag over her shoulder as she steps back onto the street where Louis is waiting. Her nose crinkles cutely at the mess her ice cream has made. She shrugs her shoulders and takes it off Louis, giving it a big lick.

“This is so sticky.”

Louis snorts indelicately. “I know,” she agrees. “Luckily there’s wipes in my bag.”

They continue their stroll down the street, licking their ice cream cones and peering into shop display windows when something catches their eyes. Their first week in Paris is already over, bringing about a sense of sadness that Louis isn’t quite sure of. She doesn’t really want this part of their holiday to end. She’s having such a good time here with Harry, and she doesn’t want to lose that. 

Now that they’ve decided to get married in Paris, everything seems so much _more_ to Louis. There’s more to do, more to see, more to love. Just _more_. She had texted her mum her idea, and Jay had responded with a series of emojis that Louis can only translate to be positive. It really is the perfect location. 

When their ice creams are finished, Louis fishes around in her handbag for the small packet of disposable hand wipes that she has. She gives one to Harry, and takes one for herself, thankful that it removes all traces of sticky ice cream from her skin.

After she’s put their rubbish in a nearby bin, Louis looks at her phone for the time. She pockets it and takes Harry’s hand, leading her down a different street.

“Where are we going?” Harry asks, looking around at their new surroundings.

“I’m keeping a promise,” Louis replies. She squeezes Harry’s hand gently and leads Harry into yet another shop. 

This one is different, of course, and Harry’s breath hitches when she registers exactly what Louis is planning to do. She can’t help but smile at the look on Harry’s face. She bites her lip, her cheeks flushing, and Louis can’t help but think of the conversation she and Zayn had after Harry had got her first tattoo. Louis knows, in detail, from both Zayn and Harry herself, just how affected Harry was when she got her first tattoo, but she’s curious to experience it for herself. To see if it was a one-time thing, or if it’s something that will happen every time that Harry gets a tattoo. 

Louis approaches the reception counter and informs the person behind the desk that she has an appointment booked. She’s told to have a seat and that her tattooist will be with them shortly.

“Sit down, love,” Louis says, reaching for Harry’s hand. She gives it a gentle tug and Harry quickly follows, sitting in the seat next to Louis. “Tell me what you’re thinking?”

Harry turns to face Louis. “Is this just your tattoo, or am I getting one too?”

“It’s up to you, love,” Louis replies. “I’ve booked the entire afternoon slot in case you wanted to get another one. I’ll go first, just to give you time to decide.”

Harry nods and wriggles in her seat. She runs her fingers through her hair before piling it up in a top-knot on her head and securing it with a hair tie. 

A moment later, Louis’ name is called and she gets up, holding her hand out for Harry to take. They follow the tattooist through the shop and into a room that has photographs plastering the walls. There’s so many photos that Louis has a hard time pin pointing just _one_ to look at.

“Hello, I’m Amber.”

“Louis, and this is Harry.” She shakes Amber’s hand and sets down her handbag on a spare chair. 

“What can I do for you today, Louis and Harry?” Amber asks, rolling her shoulders as she walks across the small room. 

“I’ve got one picked out, but my fiancée isn’t sure what she wants just yet,” Louis replies. “Do you have a book she can look through?”

Amber nods and pulls out a thick binder. She passes it to Harry who eagerly takes it and settles into a chair. 

“I’d love this if you could,” Louis says. She pulls up an image on her phone and shows it to Amber who nods. 

“Simple enough,” she says. “Where would you like it?”

“Right here,” Louis replies. She pokes the inside of her right upper arm and Amber nods. 

“Would you like the same typeface?” 

“Please,” Louis says. 

“Sit down and we’ll get started then.”

Louis quickly obeys, sparing Harry a quick glance, but she’s completely engrossed in the tattoo folder. She watches Amber as she gets ready, pulling on black latex gloves and getting the ink measured out. 

The entire process isn’t very long, Louis notes. She expects it to take a bit longer than it actually does, but before she knows it, Amber is tattooing her skin. The first press makes Louis flinch, but she sucks her lips between her teeth and focuses on not moving. The last thing that she wants is to wriggle and have her tattoo get messed up.

She looks up after a few moments to see Harry staring at them. She licks her lips, catching Louis’ gaze, her pupils completely blown. Even though Louis had been expecting this reaction from Harry, it still startles her to see it. It makes her clit throb a little between her legs just knowing how turned on Harry is already.

Louis is so busy watching Harry watching her that she doesn’t even notice that her tattoo is complete until Amber moves away, the buzzing of the tattoo gun no longer filling the room. She listens to Amber’s instructions about caring for her tattoo as she applies a layer of cling film to Louis’ skin, taping it down. 

It looks awesome, Louis thinks, looking at the words ‘ _far away_ ’ tattooed on the inside of her right upper arm. Exactly how she pictured it would turn out. 

Harry is at her side in an instant, her hand running down Louis’ back. “That looks…”

“Sick, right?” Louis offers, looking up at Harry, and Harry nods. She dips her head and kisses Louis hotly. Louis is quick to break the kiss, not wanting to be kicked out for indecency or anything of the like.

“Have you decided what you want, Harry?” Amber asks, turning her attention back to them.

Harry bites her bottom lip. “I’m a little torn,” she says. “I _really_ want these interlocking female symbols, but I also want this rose and dagger tattoo, too.”

Louis glances at the folder where Harry is pointing to the rose and dagger. “Split it,” she finds herself saying. “You get the rose, I’ll get the dagger?”

Harry whips her head to face Louis. “Really?”

Louis nods. “Yeah. It’ll be our first couples tattoo.”

The smile she gets from Harry makes her stomach swoop pleasantly. “Alright.”

Amber takes the folder and nods. “Where would you like them?” 

“Here, please,” Harry says. She points right at her knicker line, close to where her leg meets hip. “Both of them. One on each side.”

“I can do that,” Amber replies. “Which one first?”

Harry looks to Louis as she takes Louis’ place in the tattooing chair. “The female symbols.”

“Lower your trousers, please.”

Harry is quick to comply, shucking out of her trousers and pulling her knickers down far enough that Louis thinks for a moment that she’s going to take those off, too.

The interlocking female symbols are tattooed onto the right side of Harry’s body, small enough to be hidden by the fabric of Harry’s underwear. Louis watches Harry carefully. She can see Harry’s nipples hardening through her shirt at the first press of the tattoo needle to her skin. She breaks out in goosebumps and her breathing immediately gets shallower. 

Louis slips her hand into Harry’s, squeezing softly. Harry turns her attention to Louis, her eyes glazed completely over. 

“ _Fuck_ ,” Harry moans breathily. 

“Almost done,” Amber replies. She clearly thinks that Harry’s in some kind of pain, but Louis knows better. 

She’s a little jealous that Zayn was the first person to see Harry like this. That she wasn’t there when Harry got her first tattoo. A pang of longing goes through Louis. She’s quick to brush it aside, glad to be here now, doing this _now_ with Harry. 

“All done,” Amber says, wiping off the excess ink. “Do you need a break or do you want me to do the other one now?”

“I’m good,” Harry replies dopily. “Next one, please!”

Amber moves to Harry’s other side, forcing Louis to swap places with her. She tangles her fingers with Harry’s, squeezing lightly until Harry looks up at her again. Her tongue darts out to lick her bitten bottom lip, making it slick and shiny. It’s taking all of Louis’ control to not just kiss her right now. She’s thankful that they’re only small tattoos and aren’t taking a lot of time. All she wants to do is get back to the hotel and fuck Harry senseless. 

Before she knows it, Amber has finished Harry’s rose tattoo. It’s small, no longer than two inches, with a lovely stem where the dagger would usually go. It’s covered with cling wrap and taped down a moment later. Harry gets up out of the chair and giggles, a little clumsy on her feet. Louis hastily sits Harry down in the vacant chair with their handbags and gives her a chaste kiss. 

“ _Behave_ ,” she whispers. “Put your clothes back on. We’ll be done here soon and then I’m going to have my way with you at the hotel, alright?”

“Alright,” Harry replies breathily. 

“Ready?” Amber asks Louis when she steps back from Harry. 

“Yeah,” she replies. She lowers her own trousers and knickers enough for Amber to work on her skin. 

The dagger is tattooed into the exact same spot, but on Louis’ right side. She can’t wait to be on top of Harry and for them to line up perfectly. She can’t help but smile at the thought. The dagger is small, hardly any detail, but it’s flawless. And it compliments Harry’s tattoo _perfectly_. 

Once Amber has finished, Louis pulls her trousers back up, hissing as the fabric rubs against her abused skin. She’s been given a set of printed instructions to take with them, which she hastily folds and puts in her handbag. She follows Amber out to the cash register and pulls out her purse. She hands over her credit card and Amber rings up their sale. 

“Thank you for the tattoos,” Louis says as she accepts her card back, sliding it back into its spot in her purse. “We really appreciate it.”

Harry giggles into the side of Louis’ neck, her arms uselessly looping around Louis’ middle.

Amber eyes Harry wearily. “Glad to be of service. If you want any more work done, you know where I am.”

“Thank you,” Louis says and Harry repeats Louis’ words. 

They leave the shop and Louis hastily flags down a taxi. There’s no way that they’ll make it back to the hotel on foot, not with how docile Harry seems to be. Thankfully, the drive is quick, and they make it up to their hotel room without much fuss. 

“Get cleaned up and then naked and on the bed,” Louis instructs the second they step into their suite. Harry nods and heads for the bathroom. Louis takes a few moments to set up some mood music and follows Harry into the bathroom to clean up herself. 

Harry’s standing in front of the mirror, admiring her new tattoos when Louis walks in. 

“Bed, _now_.”

“Yes, Louis.”

Louis takes a few moments to herself to just breathe. She washes up and then ties her hair out of the way. She strips off, leaving her clothes in a pile on the floor next to Harry’s own. She makes her way back to the bedroom and sees Harry’s legs splayed wide, with two fingers buried inside herself. Her breathy moans are music to Louis’ ears. 

“Stop touching yourself,” Louis says as she climbs up onto the bed. She leans over Harry, between her legs, close enough to tease but not to do anything else.

“Fuck me, Louis, _please_ , I _need it_.”

“Soon, sweetheart,” Louis promises. She dips her head to kiss Harry softly. “Do I need to tie you up?”

Harry nods. “Yes, please.”

Louis gets up off the bed and pulls a sturdy scarf to tie Harry up with. She makes quick work of binding Harry’s hands and securing them out of the way. She gives an experimental tug, satisfied with its hold on Harry. 

“Touch me, please. Louis, _please_.”

“Patience, love,” Louis replies. 

Her fingers dance over Harry’s skin, running down her arms and up over her ribs, her breasts, and back down again. Touching _everywhere_ except where Harry wants her to touch. She settles between Harry’s spread legs, her mouth watering at the sight of Harry’s slick pussy, begging for Louis’ mouth to be on her already. It’s absolute intoxicating being here. 

Without any more thought, Louis lowers her mouth to Harry’s pussy and licks a thick stripe upwards, causing Harry to moan and push down hard. She sucks on Harry’s clit, tongue flicking against the nub. Harry moans loudly, rutting against Louis’ mouth as much as she can. 

She grips Harry’s hips, holding her as still as she can. She curls her hands upwards, taking a moment to glance at the two plastic covered tattoos before she presses her thumbs hard against them. 

Harry’s screaming orgasm rips through their room, so loud that Louis is certain that someone is going to complain at the noise. Harry’s clit throbs against Louis’ tongue, hot and wet in her mouth. She twitches and trembles, her legs shaking on either side of Louis’ head. Louis keeps licking Harry until she’s clean and panting beneath her.

She kisses each covered tattoo and then the centre of Harry’s chest before kissing her soundly on the lips.

“You were a bit loud, love,” Louis whispers, brushing her nose over the mound of Harry’s cheek. 

Harry’s sob breaks Louis out of her thoughts. She hastily unties Harry, worried, but Harry immediately curls into her, clinging to her like an octopus. She wraps herself around Harry as best as she can.

“You were amazing,” Louis says. “And I am so in love with you. You’re a wonderful and remarkable person, Harry.”

“Love you, Lou.”

“Love you too, princess,” Louis whispers. 

Harry snuggles against her, smiling all the while. Louis gently caresses her naked body, taking the time to just _touch_. She keeps whispering sweet nothings to Harry, remembering all of the BDSM readings that she’s done that says about complimenting her sub. Because she’s pretty sure that Harry just achieved sub-space without even meaning to. 

It sends a thrill through Louis, knowing that they achieved that together. That Harry was able to achieve that without even having that in mind to do. Louis figured that the first time it happened would be when they were at home doing a scene together. 

It’s kind of fitting that it’s happened now, though, she thinks. And it’s kind of perfect how Harry looks up at her like Louis has hung the moon. Because if that was a thing she was able to do, Louis would absolutely do it for the girl in her arms.

~*~

“There’s one more stop I want to make,” Louis says, gently tugging on Harry’s hand. It’s been a couple of days since they got their tattoos, and they’re out walking the streets of Paris once more. Louis is never going to tire of this, she thinks. Harry nods and walks with her without questioning it. Louis glances at her phone and figures that they’ll just make the booking she’s made if they’re lucky.

Harry’s eyes go comically wide as Louis leads her into a beautiful shop that has a gorgeous collection of evening gowns displayed in the windows. 

“What are we here for?” Harry asks, her voice barely above a whisper as Louis holds the door open for her.

“We need an evening gown each for tonight,” Louis replies. “Hence the shop choice.”

“But _why_?” Harry asks.

“We’re going to the opera, and I’m pretty sure an evening gown is standard attire, love.”

Harry’s cheeks flush with warmth and she presses close to Louis. “I’ve always wanted to go to the opera.”

“I know,” Louis says softly, unable to keep the fondness out of her tone. 

“Miss Tomlinson?” a worker approaches them, her French accent making Louis’ name sound much fancier than it really is.

“Yes, that’s us,” Louis replies. 

“Wonderful. I have put aside some selections based on your requirements when we spoke on the phone,” Genevieve, their assistant, says as she leads them towards the back of the shop where the dressing rooms are located. 

Louis catches Harry looking around at everything, her mouth agape as she does. 

“ _Lou_ ,” Harry breathes. “Everything in here is… I have no words.”

“I know, love I know,” Louis replies, feeling very much the same. 

Genevieve leads them to the back where she has two clothing racks filled with dresses, one for Harry to choose from, and the other for Louis. 

“May I offer you some champagne?” Genevieve asks.

“Please,” Louis replies. Genevieve nods and disappears, leaving them alone for the moment. 

“Louis, this is… it’s too much!” Harry exclaims. She approaches one of the racks, seemingly knowing which one was hers immediately. Louis figures it’s because the other rack has a bunch of red dresses on it that are in Louis’ signature colour, while the one Harry went to has a fair few pink dresses on it.

“It’s not, love,” Louis says, approaching Harry. She curls her arms around Harry from behind, pressing her lips to Harry’s shoulder. “I want us to experience everything in full. And that includes getting a beautiful dress to wear out to the opera.”

Harry turns in Louis’ arms, fixing her with a look. “I don’t want to just wear this dress once and it go into the wardrobe when we get back home. I want to get something I can wear a few times. Especially since most of these dresses are _expensive_. Upwards of five hundred Euros expensive.”

Louis shrugs. “I know for a _fact_ that you’ll wear this dress more than once. Remember those shoes I bought you? The Louboutin ones? You wore them to _death_. So don’t worry about not wearing a dress only once – I know you’ll wear it whenever you can.”

Harry sucks her bottom lip into her mouth. “Alright,” she concedes. She kisses Louis soundly on the lips. “All of these dresses are gorgeous! I don’t know how I’m going to choose!”

Filled with warm affection for Harry, Louis kisses the side of her neck and steps back to let her to it. 

Genevieve returns a moment later holding a tray with two champagne glasses and the accompanying bottle. Louis accepts one and takes a sip as she peruses the rack of dresses that Genevieve has put aside for her. 

Harry is right, Louis thinks, they’re all gorgeous dresses. She rearranges the selection into ones that she knows definitely won’t look right on her body shape, to ones that she’s willing to try on. 

But first, she’s more than content to sit down in one of the plush chairs and watch Harry parade dress after dress. Genevieve sits with her, patiently waiting for Harry to show off each dress she tries on. 

It’s easy for Louis to tell which dresses Harry likes and which ones she doesn’t just by the way she holds herself once she’s wearing it. Louis can easily rule out half of the ones that Harry has tried on with that notion alone. 

But _the_ dress, the one that Harry probably doesn’t even realise is the perfect one for her, is a beautiful black number with a plunging neckline. It’s absolutely stunning and Harry’s face lights up like a Christmas tree the moment she steps out of the changing room wearing it.

“That’s the one,” Louis breathes. “You look absolutely breathtaking, Harry.”

Harry beams at her, twirling in her dress. It flares up as she spins, settling back down around her ankles when she stills again. 

“I love it,” Harry says breathlessly. “I can’t believe how much I love it.”

“Valentino is an _excellent_ choice,” Genevieve says, standing up. “I don’t even have to tailor it much. Maybe just a little here.” She pinches _just_ so on the dress and it makes it fit Harry’s body perfectly. “Yes, that will do. I can have Andre tailor it right away.”

“Yes, please,” Harry says with a nod. “Let me just take it off.” True to Harry’s style, she slips the dress off right there, instead of heading back into the changing room. Louis bites back a grin at Genevieve’s expression, but she takes it all in her stride, accepting the dress from Harry. 

“I’ll be back in a moment.”

Louis can’t help but grin at Harry. “Get changed, love, before you scare anyone else that works here.”

Harry giggles and heads back into the changing room. Louis finishes off her glass of champagne and stands, selecting the first dress from the rack to try on. She holds it up, letting the fabric settle. 

Once Harry steps out of the changing room, Louis enters it, immediately hanging the dress on one of the hooks before changing out of her clothes. It doesn’t fit as well as she hoped it would, pinching in the wrong places and sagging in others. She’s taking it off before she even realises she’s made the decision to not show it to Harry. 

“That one was a bust,” Louis says as she reaches for the next dress. This one is black and has a lot of potential, she thinks. 

“But you didn’t even show it to me,” Harry whines. 

“It looked awful on, babe. My boobs didn’t fit in it properly at all.”

She can hear Harry huff as she slips the next dress on. And immediately starts itching.

She exits the dressing room and makes a face at Harry, who is sitting in the chair Louis vacated, sipping on her champagne. 

“That one looks nice,” Harry says with a nod. 

“It’s itchy as fuck,” Louis replies. “I’m not spending hours in a dress I’m going to itch in.” She plucks the next one off the rack and heads back into the dressing room. 

The second she pulls it on, it sits _perfectly_ on her body. The fabric is impossibly soft, definitely not itchy in the slightest, especially considering that there’s sheer fabric on her naked breasts. She peers at her reflection, unable to stop smiling at how good it looks. Harry is going to _die_. 

Predictably, Harry’s eyes widen dramatically as she sees Louis in the red dress.

“Yes!” Harry exclaims before Louis can even open her mouth. “That’s the dress! Oh god, please pick that dress.”

Louis laughs, unable to stop the noise even if she wanted to. Harry sets her glass down and closes the gap between them. Her hands stroke up Louis’ bear arms, ghosting along the edge of the fabric that covers her breasts. 

“Do you like it?”

“I _love_ it,” Harry breathes, unable to take her eyes off Louis’ tits.

“My eyes are up here, love,” Louis teases.

“And they’re gorgeous, really.”

Louis laughs again and gently squeezes Harry’s hand. The next moment, Harry is crowding against her, pushing her back into the dressing room, and pulling the thick curtain over. Not that it would block out any noises whatsoever, of course. Harry has Louis pressed against the solid wall before Louis even realises what’s happening. 

“Holy fuck, Lou,” she breathes. Her lips crash against Louis’ own, kissing her hotly. Louis’ arms automatically come up to hold Harry close, resting on her hips. 

Harry pushes the fabric off Louis’ shoulders, fully exposing her naked upper half. She ducks her head and fastens her mouth to Louis’ nipple. Louis can’t help the moan that escapes her. She bites down on her lip to keep her noises to herself. Harry moves from one nipple to the other, her teeth grazing against the nub until it’s rock hard in her mouth.

“Fuck, Harry,” Louis pants, her hand sliding into Harry’s hair to hold her in place. “C’mon, love… _oh fuck_.”

Louis’ nipple makes a wet noises as it slides from between Harry’s lips. Her eyes are glassy and her lips slick with saliva as she kisses Louis again. It’s absolutely filthy and leaves nothing to the imagination. 

“This needs to come off,” Harry breathes, unzipping the dress. “And I need my mouth–”

“Do you need a hand, Miss Tomlinson?”

Louis freezes. She lets out a strangled cough. “The zipper, uh, got stuck, but Harry helped me.” She swats at Harry’s unhelpful hands and gives her a pointed look until Harry steps back. 

It’s absolutely useless. Genevieve will know _exactly_ what was going on in the dressing room, especially since Harry’s expression will say it all. She always gets that dumb, happy look when she’s horny. It’s one of Louis’ favourite things. She presses one last, quick kiss to Harry’s lips before pushing her out of the changing room. She shakes her head, unable to stop smiling as she hastily takes the dress off and puts her own clothes back on. 

“This one is perfect,” she tells Genevieve who has a pinched look on her face. From their lewd acts or for another reason, Louis can’t tell.

“I’ll ring you up then,” Genevieve says. “Andre has finished altering the other dress. Do you need to try it on again?”

“We trust him,” Louis replies, giving Genevieve a beatific smile. 

Harry looks like she’s three seconds away from bursting into giggles and Louis knows that if Harry starts, she’ll be right there with her. She sucks her cheeks in and bites down on both of them for a moment to get herself under control. 

Once Louis has paid, Genevieve puts the dresses into a garment bag and wishes them a good day. Louis nods and returns the sentiment before taking Harry’s hand and leaving the shop. The moment they’re out of the shops line of sight, Harry laughs loudly. She leans into Louis, burying her face in Louis’ neck.

“Her _face_ ,” Harry eventually gets out. There’s tears leaking from her eyes and she wipes at them with the back of her hand. “I thought she was going to kick us out.”

“I’m surprised she didn’t,” Louis says. She wraps her arm around Harry’s middle and starts walking down the street with her. 

“It was well worth it,” Harry says after a few moments, sighing happily. 

Louis shakes her head, unable to keep the fond smile off her face.

The rest of their afternoon passes incident free, and they have an early dinner at the hotel’s restaurant so they can prepare for their night at the opera. Louis can’t wait. She’s excited to not only see this opera, but for Harry to see it, too.

Soon they’re entering the theatre for their viewing of _The Magic Flute_. There’s more people crowding in the lobby than Louis expected. She follows the crowd until she spots the coat check and she takes Harry’s hand, leading her through the throng of people. 

“There’s so many people,” Harry comments, pressing closer to Louis as someone bumps her from behind. “Am I overdressed?”

“Of course not, love,” Louis says. “Look at the couple over there.” She nods her head in the direction of a woman who has a large feather boa around her neck and is brandishing a glass of champagne as she speaks. “I think we’ll fit in just fine.”

Harry smooths a hand across her pearl necklace and nods. She’s an absolute vision of beauty, Louis thinks. Her hair is pinned up, accentuating her neck, and therefore her beautiful necklace. And also the plunging neckline of the sleek dress she has on. Not for the first time Louis catches herself wondering how she got so lucky.

They make their way to the coat check room and Louis shrugs out of her coat, handing it over. She sees the girl’s eyes go wide from behind the counter as she sees Louis’ tits through the sheer fabric of the top half of her dress, and Louis just shrugs and grins. She accepts their numbers and pops them into the clutch she’s carrying.

“I told you I should have worn nipple tape,” Louis mutters to Harry as they make their way through the crowd.

“But that dress is meant to _show off_ your assets! Not hide them,” Harry replies cheekily. “Besides, I think you look amazing. Let’s get a selfie. Over there, the lighting is better.” 

Louis is helpless as she follows Harry. Harry takes a bunch of selfies, choosing one to post to social media later. Thankfully Louis’ nipples aren’t visible in the photo otherwise her PR team would have a field day trying to work that angle. She bites back a sigh, trying not to think too much about work and public relations teams.

After they’ve enjoyed a glass of wine, the theatre doors open and they’re allowed to enter. Louis slips her hand into Harry’s and leads her to their seats. She sits comfortably, impressed with their view of the stage. 

Everything is exquisite. The stage, the singing, the performing. Louis can’t get over how absolutely wonderful it is. For her first opera experience, she couldn’t have hoped for anything better. The story is absolutely captivating from the very first moment. Louis finds herself completely enthralled in the play unfolding in front of her.

During the Queen of the Night’s aria, Harry’s hand grips hers tightly, her fingers digging into Louis’ hand a little harder than usual. Louis looks over and sees Harry’s eyes shining with unshed tears. Her heart fills with love for the woman sitting next to her; she is so grateful that they get to experience this together.

~*~

“We took a night cruise along the Seine River last night,” Harry says, her voice filtering through to where Louis is sitting out on their terrace with her book. They’ve just had brunch and Louis is more than happy to relax and read for a while.

“You and Dad will have to do that the next time you come to Paris.”

Louis is thrilled that Harry is enjoying herself so much. She was a bit nervous about their whole holiday, but everything seems to be going smoothly so far. She’s booked a few different things for their evenings, wanting to take advantage of everything that Paris has to offer. And wanting Harry to experience it all, too. 

The best part is that they’re sharing a lot of firsts together, which is what Louis is enjoying the most. 

Tonight they’re going to a burlesque show. Not that Harry knows it yet. Louis is rather looking forward to seeing Harry’s face light up when she tells about it later.

Today, though, they’re spending the day relaxing. They’ve had a full-on week so far and they’ve only got two more nights in Paris. Louis wants to just spend today relaxing with her beautiful fiancée. She has a couples massage booked for one o’clock, which is creeping up closer than she realises. Her phone pings with a message and Louis flips her Kindle cover over and sets it down on her lap to look at her phone instead. 

There’s a snapchat from Niall of Zayn getting another tattoo done and that reminds Louis of her and Harry’s own tattoos. A thrill runs through her at the memory. The experience isn’t one she’s going to forget any time soon.

“Oh, Mum it was _beautiful_ ,” Harry’s voice says, getting closer. She steps out onto the terrace and takes the seat next to Louis, giving her a soft smile. “I cried because it was that beautiful.”

“Opera?” Louis asks and Harry nods. She tunes out the conversation and turns back to her phone. She takes a photo of the view from their terrace and adds some text to the photo for Niall, which reads ‘ _Send me a pic when it’s finished?_ ’ 

Louis turns her phone’s camera to Harry and takes a quick photo of her. She’s the absolute picture of comfortable. Lounging in fluffy socks, her dressing gown, and her hair tied haphazardly on the top of her head. Louis loves every single inch of her. 

A bird lands on the ledge of their terrace, peering at Louis with its head cocked at an angle only birds can do. She watches as it scratches its claws at the ledge before flying off. Sometimes Louis wishes that she was a bird so she could fly off whenever she wanted to. 

Harry’s phone call with her mum ends and she stretches, her robe falling open as she does. She gives Louis a cheeky grin like she knows _exactly_ what she’s doing. 

“We’ve got that massage shortly,” Louis says before Harry can get any ideas. Not that she would object, of course. The sex they’ve had so far this holiday has been absolutely _phenomenal_. She would, however, just like to relax and enjoy their massages, and she knows she won’t be able to do that if Harry gets her riled up beforehand. 

Later that evening, they’re seated at a table for two in the _Crazy Horse_ burlesque lounge that Louis bought tickets to. Harry had seen the sign when their taxi pulled up, and she had practically started vibrating with excitement. She’s been gushing since they walked in the door and it makes Louis feel very relieved. 

They order cocktails and sip at them until the show starts. The entire show is thrilling. There’s songs that Harry sings along to next to Louis, her attention completely captivated by the ladies dancing on stage. Louis rests her hand on Harry’s stocking-covered thigh and gently squeezes. Harry shoots her a slightly lustful look and bites her lip. She slides Louis’ hand a little higher up her thigh and pats it twice. Louis digs her fingers in ever so slightly just to hear the sharp intake of Harry’s breath.

During one song, the stage is filled with semi-naked girls dancing. Louis leans over to Harry and kisses her shoulder before whispering in her ear “I’m such a lesbian,” just to see Harry grin. She knows Harry is thinking of when she uttered the exact same words when they watched the performance of Moulin Rouge the other night.

The acts are all entertaining, making Louis so glad that she thought of this place to bring Harry to. She knew that Harry had been obsessed with the _Burlesque_ movie when it came out, which made this the most perfect place to bring Harry while they were still in Paris. It’s worth it just to see the expression on Harry’s face as they watch the dancers.

It ends far too soon for Louis’ liking and in the taxi ride home, Harry is busy on her phone which is both annoying and disappointing to Louis. She wouldn’t mind some kisses right about now while she’s still so hot under the collar. 

The taxi pulls up at the hotel and Louis thanks the driver, handing over their fare and a generous tip, before getting out of the car, making their way inside. Harry crowds against her as they stand outside of their suite. Her hair tickles Louis’ face, making it hard for her to get their door unlocked.

Once they’re finally inside, Harry rounds on Louis, pressing her up against the door and kissing her for all she’s worth. The change, while surprising, is completely welcome. Louis immediately wraps her arms around Harry, pulling her close, kissing her back with slow, practiced ease. 

“That was so much fun,” Harry whispers as she peppers kisses down Louis’ neck. “I want to be a burlesque dancer!” She pulls back, giving Louis a mega-watt grin. She twirls on the spot, giggling as she stumbles a little. 

“Give us a show then, love,” Louis says. Harry’s face lights up.

“I thought you’d never ask.” She fiddles with her phone, connecting it to a portable speaker. She presses play and winks at Louis as _But I am a Good Girl_ from the _Burlesque_ movie soundtrack comes on. 

The mini skirt Harry’s wearing thankfully gives her a lot of room for the various leg kicking that Harry seems to do at the start and Louis can’t help but laugh. Harry is an adorable drunk, she thinks. Her shirt comes off quickly, throwing it at Louis’ head. 

“‘ _I am a good girl_ ’ my arse,” Louis mutters as she follows Harry around the room. 

When the instrumental part starts, Harry grabs Louis’ hands and they dance together in the middle of the room, their bodies moving out of sync with the beat. Louis can’t wipe the grin off her face. Harry pops her butt in Louis’ direction and Louis can’t help but give it a smack. Harry jolts but laughs and twirls in Louis’ arms. She levels her with a heated look before kissing her hotly. 

Louis holds Harry tightly to her body and walks them backwards to the sofa, laying Harry down on it. 

“You, my love, are an _amazing_ dancer,” Louis teases, leaning back. She pulls off her own shirt, throwing it across the room. 

“I know,” Harry replies, her eyes shining happily. “I could make a career out of being a dancer.”

“You should,” Louis says. She unhooks her bra and takes that off, too. Harry’s hands immediately go to her breasts, thumbs rubbing over her nipples. 

“You should make a career out of fucking me,” Harry says, wiggling her eyebrows. 

“Now _that_ would give people something to talk about,” Louis says as she shimmies out of her skinny jeans, damning her past self for putting them on. But Harry had said they made her arse look amazing, so she couldn’t really pass that up. “Louis Tomlinson, world champion fanny eater.”

Harry’s laugh fills the room and Louis’ stomach swoops pleasantly at the noise. She pats Harry over her pubic mound to drive her point home. She then slides her hands up, hooking her fingers under the elastic of the stockings Harry is wearing and tugs. A frown settles on her features as she realises that the sheer nylon doesn’t want to come down too easily.

“And I _would_ be the best at it. If only _someone_ hadn’t decided to wear bloody polka dot stockings that are _clearly_ the devil’s work.” 

Louis grunts as she yanks at the fabric, falling on her arse as she does. Predictably, it tears, and she levels Harry with an exasperated look. “Right, well. That’s it, sex is not happening tonight.”

“ _Nooo_!” Harry whines. She makes quick work of taking off the blasted stockings and her knickers, leaving her completely naked on the sofa. It truly is a sight to behold. 

Louis gets up off the floor and leans over Harry. “My arse is _very_ sore right now.”

Harry gives her a sombre look. “Want me to kiss it better?” 

“Yes, I very much would like that.”

Harry leans up into Louis’ space, her hand sliding down Louis’ arse, running her finger along the elastic of her knickers. She snaps it against Louis’ skin grinning from ear to ear. 

“ _Oi_ ,” Louis says and Harry laughs. “That hurt.”

“Did it?” Harry asks innocently, her hand still caressing Louis’ bottom. She quickly smacks Louis’ arse, causing Louis to move with the motion. 

“Cheeky.”

Harry beams up at Louis and does it again. 

Louis gapes at her, unable to keep her unamused expression when Harry’s busy trying not to laugh. She leans forward as if to kiss Harry and changes tactic at the last moment, bending down to blow a big raspberry in between Harry’s boobs. She quickly flicks her fingers along Harry’s stomach, tickling her mercilessly. Harry’s laughter fills the room as she squirms underneath Louis. She flails underneath Louis, batting her hands on Louis’ arms to get her to stop. 

They fall off the sofa, Louis landing with a thud on the soft carpeted floor, Harry landing on top of her. Harry immediately enacts her revenge, tickling Louis until she’s positive that she is going to get carpet burn on her back from all of the moving she’s doing. She moves underneath Harry, trying to dislodge her. She gets a thigh between Harry’s legs, ready to topple them over so she’s on top when Harry suddenly stills. Her eyes glaze over and she lets out a breathless little moan.

Louis’ hands still on the carpet and she watches, enraptured, as Harry slides her naked pussy down Louis’ bare thigh. 

“ _Oh_ ,” Harry mumbles. Her eyes are shut, her bottom lip in her mouth, and a look of pure bliss blossoms on her face. 

Louis’ keeps her foot planted firmly on the floor, her hands coming up to Harry’s hips to hold her steady. She watches as Harry’s hips move, slowly building up to a steady pace. Harry’s moans and breathy sighs are like music to Louis’ ears. She loves when Harry gets like this, completely caught up in the moment. 

Harry shifts, leaning forwards, her hands planting on the floor next to Louis’ head, her hair curtaining around them. Louis keeps her gaze fixed on Harry’s face as Harry keeps rubbing against Louis’ thigh. It’s hot and wet and feels a bit odd to Louis, but she can’t bring herself to care. Not when Harry looks like she does.

Her fingers dig into Harry’s hips a little harder just to hear Harry gasp. 

“Fuck, Lou,” Harry moans. Louis surges up, capturing Harry’s lips between her own in a heated kiss. 

“C’mon, baby,” Louis whispers against Harry’s lips. “That’s my girl.”

“ _Oh. Oh, fuck_ ,” Harry groans. Her hips start moving faster, pressing harder against Louis’ thigh. Louis’ thigh is completely soaked, making the slide easier for Harry. Harry throws her head back as she orgasms, her hips moving rapidly the entire time. 

Louis watches her, completely captivated. “ _Fuck_.” Harry all but collapses on top of Louis, her pussy still resting against Louis’ soaking wet thigh.

“Princess, I need to eat you out,” Louis says as she rolls them over. “Please?”

Harry nods sleepily and spreads her legs. “Go for it.”

Louis lowers her head to Harry’s pussy, just breathing her in. It glistens, her vulva still twitching from the intensity of her first orgasm. Louis licks over the soft, puffy flesh before flattening her tongue to give a thick, wide lick upwards. Harry makes the most beautiful noise, pushing down into Louis’ mouth. 

That’s all it takes before Louis is sucking Harry’s swollen clit into her mouth. Harry moans, her hand fisting in Louis’ hair, rutting down into Louis’ mouth. She’s relentless, trying to taste all of Harry at once. It’s absolutely intoxicating being between Harry’s legs. Louis can’t get enough of it.

Harry’s second orgasm isn’t as intense as the first one, but when her thighs begin to tremble around Louis’ head, she knows to expect the warmth over her tongue. She licks and kisses at Harry’s pussy until she’s completely clean and twitching with oversensitivity. 

“Love you,” Harry mumbles. “Come sit on my face. I don’t want to move.”

Louis snorts but complies, shoving off her knickers as she moves. Her clit is aching, her pussy soaking wet already and she knows that she isn’t going to last long.

She lowers down over Harry’s mouth, moaning at the first swipe of Harry’s tongue against her. She leans forward, bracing her hands on the carpet as she ruts against Harry’s mouth. Harry teases her, tongue swirling around her clit before moving off completely. Even when she’s orgasm-dumb herself, she still manages to drive Louis wild.

Thankfully the teasing doesn’t last long and Harry gives Louis exactly what she wants. Her fingers curl in the carpet as she orgasms, the release washing over her in pleasant, long-awaited waves. She trembles all over with the intensity of it. 

Her knees ache as she moves off Harry, collapsing onto the floor next to her. “Fucking hell.”

Harry grins and rolls into Louis’ arms. “My thoughts exactly.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi again. If you've got this far, I hope you enjoyed this part. ♥
> 
>  
> 
> rebloggable post on my [tumblr](http://star55.tumblr.com)


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Again, tags have been updated to reflect the upcoming chapter.
> 
>  _Massive_ thank yous to Jay and Leah for the cheerleading, and to Jada for the beta read. It is very much appreciated. ♥

~*~  
_Harry_

After Paris, they stopped for a week in Athens, then Stockholm, and it’s the very beginning of July by the time they get to Berlin. And Harry is excited to spend a week exploring this new city and all it has to offer.

Which is, of course, when Louis gets food poisoning the first night they’re there. 

Harry hates seeing her fiancée so wrecked, especially when she can’t do anything to fix it. She keeps Louis plied with bottles of water and wet flannelettes to mop the sweat off her brow, but mostly it’s just waiting it out. 

The first twenty-four hours are the worst. Louis bats Harry away, clutching the toilet bowl like a lifeline, but Harry doesn’t let her be left alone. She sits with her, there, in their hotel bathroom, making sure that Louis isn’t alone.

“You must be bored,” Louis says the next morning. She looks pale, exhausted, and sweaty. 

“Not at all,” Harry replies. She closes her Kindle, setting it down next to her thighs. Louis finally fell asleep around three in the morning, and Harry has been lightly sleeping on and off ever since. She’s kept herself occupied with reading a selection of lesbian young adult novels. 

“What a way to spend our first night in Berlin.” Louis groans and shifts, stretching her limbs. She gets out of bed and sighs. Harry winces when Louis does, feeling very empathetic for her fiancée. She can only imagine how much Louis is hurting.

“At least it will be memorable.”

Louis snorts. Then immediately looks like she regrets the decision, and runs to the bathroom. Harry sighs and gets out of bed, too. She reaches for the hotel room’s phone and calls down to reception to ask for new bed sheets. While Louis is in the bathroom, she strips the bed completely, pillow cases and all, and stuffs everything into one of the empty pillow cases. 

She hears the shower turn on a moment later, and makes her way over to the bathroom, opening the door a crack.

“You alright, love?” Harry calls.

“Yeah,” Louis replies, sounding completely exhausted. 

“Take your time in there, okay?”

“Yeah,” Louis repeats.

Harry closes the door behind her and rests her forehead against it for a few moments. She potters around the room, tidying things up. She changes her clothes, and then sits on the sofa with her Kindle to read until Louis finishes in the shower, or until housekeeping knocks on the door, whichever comes first. 

Both happens at the same time. Louis exits the bathroom in the white bathrobe just as there’s a knock on their door, followed by ‘housekeeping’. Harry immediately gets up to answer the door. She thanks the housekeeper and steps aside so she can change the beds. 

“You alright?” Harry asks, gently cupping Louis’ face in her hands. Louis nods and sags into Harry’s arms. 

“Everything hurts,” Louis says. “Thank you for everything you’ve done.”

Harry cuddles Louis tighter. “There’s nowhere else I’d be.”

Once their bed is made, and the housekeeper has left, Louis flops onto the bed, her robe falling open as she does.

“Get under the covers, silly,” Harry says fondly. She tugs and frees the tightly tucked in sheets until she has Louis’ body completely covered. “Get some rest.”

“Read to me?” Louis asks, shucking off her bathrobe. 

“Of course.” Harry hangs the robe away and climbs into bed next to Louis. She picks up her Kindle and flicks back to the start of the book. She holds it in one hand, the other scratching at Louis’ scalp until she falls asleep.

She keeps reading out loud for a few more minutes until she’s sure that Louis is asleep. She turns the Kindle off and sets it to the side, burrowing under the sheets and spooning Louis until she, too, falls asleep.

Harry gets a couple of hours rest, waking only when her stomach grumbles for food. Louis is still fast asleep and Harry is loath to wake her. She grabs the complimentary hotel notepad and scribbles Louis a note, leaving it on her empty pillow. 

She changes into jeans and a tank top before she leaves, grabbing her handbag and hotel key card on her way out. 

It’s a bit odd to be leaving Louis all alone in their hotel room. She’s so used to being by Louis’ side this last month that she feels like she’s missing a limb. Harry makes her way to the concierge desk and asks for a café recommendation, somewhere that she can have a quick lunch at. 

There’s a lovely little bistro close to the hotel that Harry is recommended and she finds it easily. She orders herself some lunch and sits down at a table that overlooks the busy streets. While she waits for her lunch, Harry pulls out her journal. It’s a habit she’s had for years now, but found that she especially wanted to keep up with while she and Louis are travelling. She doesn’t want to forget a single moment of their time together. 

She’s writing when her lunch is placed in front of her on the table and she looks up to thank her server before going back to her writing. She takes bites of her food whenever her wrist needs a break, but immediately gets back to it, as she doesn’t want to lose momentum. 

It takes her almost an hour to eat her lunch, which is very delicious, and she makes a note of that in her journal, too. This specific volume is almost full, and it amazes her just how much she and Louis have done in the first weeks of their holiday. She’s been taking lots of photos of each place they go to as well so that she’ll have plenty to scrapbook with when they get back home. That prospect excites her just as much as the travelling does. 

Once Harry has finished her lunch, she makes her way down a row of shops, browsing in several windows before she comes across a lovely little stationery shop. She steps inside and is immediately drawn to a selection of cards on one wall. She chooses a few, thinking that it would be really lovely to send her mum a card to let her know that she’s thinking of her. She selects another to send to Gemma, smiling at her choice. She picks one to give to Niall and Zayn, too, figuring that there is no point in posting them anything as they are both travelling as well. 

One card catches her attention, a _Get Well Soon_ card that is just _perfect_ for Louis. She grins to herself as she thinks about Louis’ face when she sees the card later. 

Harry walks the aisles, choosing different things that catch her eyes. She spots a thick, spiral bound notebook that is absolutely _perfect_ to be her next journal. She opens it and strokes a finger over the first page, admiring the thickness and the quality of the paper. She chooses two of them, one in a gorgeous pastel pink colour, the other in a mint green. 

Her hands are getting a little full as she walks through the shop. She tucks the books and cards into the crook of her arm, and stuffing what else she can there too. She grabs a few different pens from a selection on a table, too. Her fingers hover over one pen that has a fluffy end and she grabs it, deciding that it’s too cute to pass up.

The sales assistant calls her forward at the cash register and she smiles, plopping all of her findings down on the counter top to be rung up. She exchanges pleasantries with the sales assistant as she pays for her items. She takes her bag of goodies and steps back out into the street. 

As she wanders, Harry thinks about how excited she is to spend two weeks in Barcelona with their families. Before they left, Anne said that she and Robin would be joining Harry, Louis, and all of Harry’s family in Barcelona. Harry had been thrilled at that and she can’t wait to spend some time in the sun with her two families. She can’t wait to spend time with Louis’ siblings, too. And she is especially excited to talk to Jay about babies and get more stories about Louis as a kid out of her, too.

Harry finds a nearby grocer’s and pops inside to get some things for Louis to have when she can stomach food again. Plain foods, as bland as they are, are probably the best things for her, she thinks. She picks up a packet of crackers and some ginger tea to help soothe Louis’ stomach. 

On her way back to the hotel, Harry stops at a café to have a cup of tea and a biscuit. She sits down at an outside table and writes in the card for Louis, hoping that it will bring a smile to her fiancée’s face. 

Her phone pings with a snapchat from Niall. She grins as she opens it, watching a video of Niall and Zayn walking towards a small aeroplane.

“We’re going sky diving!” she exclaims loudly. “I’m shitting meself but I can’t _wait_.”

“Five quid says you chicken out,” Zayn says, her face coming into the camera’s view. 

“Ten quid says I don’t,” Niall retorts. She beams at the camera before the video ends, leaving Harry smiling at her phone. She sends a text reply to wish them both luck and that she wants to know how it goes when they’re done.

When her tea is finished, Harry slips the card into the envelope it came with and writes Louis’ name on the front. She places it back into the shopping bag and gathers the rest of her belongings, making her way back down the street. 

She stops at a nearby florist, choosing a simple bouquet to give to Louis. Satisfied with everything she’s got, Harry heads back to the hotel. She opens the door as quietly as she can in case Louis is still sleeping. She spots Louis sitting on the sofa, her bathrobe wrapped around her body, her hair up in a bun on top of her head. 

“Hey,” Harry says softly as she comes into the room. “How are you feeling?”

“A bit better. I think,” Louis replies. 

Harry sets down her bags, plucking the card out and giving it to Louis along with the flowers. Louis’ face lights up, making Harry’s stomach swoop pleasantly. 

“You got me flowers?” 

Harry nods. “I wanted to give you something to brighten your day a little.”

“You’re wonderful, Harry, thank you.” Louis sniffs the flowers before setting them down gently next to her. She opens the card and laughs at the message, grinning from ear to ear. “Come here, you.”

Harry closes the distance between them, sitting on the arm of the sofa so she can hug Louis properly. Louis’ arms tighten around Harry’s middle, her face pressed into Harry’s chest.

“I love you,” Louis says, her voice muffled by Harry’s shirt.

“I love you too,” Harry replies. “I got some things from the grocer’s for when you feel like you can eat a little.”

Louis crinkles her nose. “The last thing I feel like is food.”

“I know, love, but you’ll need to eat something soon. I got some ginger tea, too. Just in case your tummy was still upset.”

“Thank you.”

Harry gets up and empties her shopping bags, putting the tea and the foodstuffs away. She puts the flowers in a vase she finds in a cupboard, smiling to herself as it brightens the room a little. 

Louis gets up and makes herself a cup of ginger tea, leaning against the counter as she waits for the kettle to boil. 

“Did you have a good time while you were out?”

Harry nods. “I did,” she replies. “I had some lunch, did a little shopping, and got a snapchat from Niall saying that she and Zayn are sky diving today.”

“Ooh, fun,” Louis says. She adds the water to her mug and lets it sit. 

“I’m waiting to hear if they went through with it or not,” Harry says. She looks at her phone but sees nothing from Niall or Zayn. 

“I reckon they will,” Louis says. “That’d be fun. We should do that, too.”

“I’m up for it if you are,” Harry replies. She finishes putting things away and crowds up into Louis’ space, wrapping her arms around Louis in a loose hold. She sighs softly, glad that Louis is feeling a little better. There’s still so much she wants to explore in Berlin, and she only wants to do it with Louis by her side.

~*~

“So there’s been a slight change of plans.”

Harry looks up from where she’s painting her toenails a vivid shade of blue. Louis walks in, her phone in one hand and an apprehensive look on her face. She moves to sit on the sofa near where Harry is sitting on the hotel room floor. 

It’s their last day in Berlin, and while they haven’t been able to do all of the exploring and sight-seeing that they had planned, Harry has really enjoyed just staying in their hotel room relaxing together. She can’t help but think that it was better for them to do that, to just relax and take time to be together without having to think about what they wanted to do or see next. She knows that she’s appreciated the time with Louis. They certainly haven’t been bored, and it’s been a nice week for them both. Despite Louis having food poisoning, that is.

“Change?” Harry asks, painting one last stripe on her big toenail. 

Louis nods. “Yeah,” she says, setting her phone down on the coffee table. “I _may_ have invited more people to come to Barcelona.”

Harry grins. “ _May_ have?” she repeats.

Louis crinkles her nose and flops back into the cushions. “Alright, so I _did_. I was on the phone with Niall earlier and suggested that she and Zayn change up their schedule and come stay with us in Barcelona before meeting up in Amsterdam, and then Eleanor called me on Skype on my laptop and I accidentally answered instead of declining and she ended up saying that she’ll come too because she wants to introduce us to her new girlfriend now they’ve been together for more than three months. Or something.”

Harry chuckles. “So how many people is that coming now?”

Louis bites her lip as she clearly mentally calculates how many of their friends and family will be on holiday with them. “Umm, nineteen including you and I. Oh, and Sophiam and Willow are coming too.”

Harry perks up at Willow’s name being mentioned. “Willow is coming? I can’t wait!”

“So you’re not mad?”

Harry shakes her head, putting the brush back into the bottle of nail polish. “Of course not. This is our first big family holiday. If we can get through this, then it’s a clear sign that we can get through _anything_ , including wedding preparations when we get back home.”

Louis sighs and she sinks onto the carpet next to Harry, crowding into her space. She parts Harry’s legs and leans over until their lips are a hair’s breath away from touching. “Thank you.” Their lips meet and Harry feels the all too familiar tingle go through her at the pressure. 

“Mm, let me finish my nails, then you can have your way with me,” Harry says, pushing Louis away with a hand.

“I’ll do your nails,” Louis says, pulling back completely. She pulls Harry’s foot into her lap and holds a hand out for the bottle of nail polish. Harry passes it over and grins as Louis pokes her tongue out in concentration.

“When does everyone get there?” Harry asks.

“The day after we do,” Louis replies without looking up. “So we get the house I rented to ourselves for an entire day.”

Harry wiggles her eyebrows suggestively. “A giant house on a private beach in Barcelona?” she begins. “There had better be skinny dipping and sex on the beach before we no longer have privacy.”

“You can count on it, babe,” Louis says. She lifts Harry’s foot and presses a kiss to the insider of her ankle. “I don’t want to see clothes on you for that full twenty-four hours.”

Laughing, Harry nods in agreement. “I think we can manage that.”

Louis finishes painting Harry’s toenails for her, and then they switch so Harry does Louis toenails in the exact same colour. She decides to leave her fingernails unpainted, though for a change. 

“Let’s stay in tonight,” Harry says as she packs away her pedicure products. “We can play Scrabble and watch movies.”

“Sounds perfect, love,” Louis agrees. She gets up and opens the room service menu. 

They order in and Harry cues up Netflix on her laptop. She and Louis snuggle on the sofa together while waiting for their dinner. She lays her hand on Louis’ thigh, stroking gently at the soft skin, completely content in just being there with her beloved fiancée.

~*~

Barcelona is _beautiful_ , Harry thinks as they approach the _massive_ house Louis rented right on their very own private beach. She’s absolutely giddy with anticipation to get in that crystal clear water and swim.

“I just need to get changed before going out there,” Louis says as if she’s read Harry’s thoughts. She pops open her suitcase and rummages around, trying to find a bikini.

“I thought someone promised me no clothes?” Harry says, hooking her finger in the belt loop of Louis’ denim shorts. She bites down on her lip and tugs Louis close, wrapping her arms low around Louis’ middle. 

“…I did promise that, didn’t I?” Louis replies with a cheeky grin. “Well, what my fiancée wants, she gets.”

Harry beams and kisses Louis briefly before pulling off her own clothes. “Race you.” She sprints from the room, laughing as she bursts through the doors onto the sand. She squeals as soon as she hits the water, enjoying its coolness on her warm skin.

It takes Louis a few more minutes. She exits the house carrying with her towels that she sets down on one of the outdoor chairs. Harry hadn’t even noticed an entire patio set up in her haste to get into the water. 

It really is lovely, Harry thinks. There’s a patio area, complete with a barbecue to the side, and then more wooden furniture set up in the sand, with huge beach umbrellas that provide shady areas for people to sit under. As she takes it all in, Harry realises that Louis really did choose the perfect location for all of their families and friends to stay.

“C’mon, slow poke!” Harry calls out. She watches with hungry eyes as Louis shucks off her clothes and makes her way into the water. When Louis finally reaches her, Harry all but throws herself at her, wrapping her arms around Louis’ shoulders, almost pushing them both over into the water. 

“Steady there, love,” Louis says, her hands coming to rest on Harry’s hips. 

“It’s amazing out here,” Harry says, closing her eyes and turning her face up towards the sun. She can feel its heat pricking at her skin. She spares a moment to be thankful for putting on sunscreen earlier. 

“Yeah, it is,” Louis agrees. “Absolutely perfect.”

Harry sighs and turns to face Louis again, dipping her head to kiss her. It’s a slow, easy kiss that is filled with promises of _more_.

“I can’t believe we’re skinny dipping in the middle of the day,” Louis comments as she loosens her grip on Harry. “You’re an absolute vixen, you are.”

Harry grins at her and jumps on Louis’ back, hooking her legs tightly around her middle. “Yes but you love me.”

“I do, princess, I do.” Louis twirls them on the spot before purposefully falling backwards into the water. Harry squeals loudly as she holds onto Louis for dear life. Louis’ laughter is the last thing she hears before they’re completely submerged. 

They let go of each other as they make their way back to the surface, sea water filling Harry’s mouth. She spits it out and cringes as the taste clings to her lips. 

She playfully splashes Louis, who laughs and splashes her back. They play around for a while, chasing each other, getting further and further out until Harry’s feet don’t touch the sand anymore. She kicks up her feet so she’s floating on her back, the sun warming her skin. She sighs and closes her eyes, letting herself drift for a few long moments.

Louis’ hand on her back startles her and Harry rights herself, her feet touching the sand once again. She drapes her arms over Louis’ shoulders and kisses her wordlessly. The kiss is charged, heated and Harry knows _exactly_ where this is going. She wants Louis all over her, as much as she can.

“Touch me?” she whispers against Louis’ lips, breathing out the word like a prayer. 

Louis’ tongue slides easily against Harry’s own. She lowers her hand from Harry’s hips, grazing over Harry’s arse, squeezing softly. The motion makes Harry rock into the touch, needing _more_. Louis turns Harry in her embrace, one hand moving up to cup her breast, the other sliding between Harry’s parted legs. Harry tilts her head back to lean on Louis’ shoulder, her breathing laboured already. Louis parts her folds and lightly touches Harry’s clit. She sighs, unable to help herself, and the sound turns Harry on even more.

Harry’s hips move of their own accord, rocking into the pressure of Louis’ fingers circling oh so slowly on her clit. She bites down on her bottom lip, enjoying the tinge of pain that comes with it. Her hand joins Louis’ on her chest, squeezing it. Louis takes the hint and tugs on Harry’s nipple until it’s hard. Harry moans, her eyes closed as she turns her face into Louis’ neck, breathing wetly against her skin.

“There, right there,” she pants, rocking harder into Louis’ hand. Her breathing changes as her orgasm washes over her, making her tingle all over. “That was lovely.” She turns in Louis’ arms and kisses her again. The water feels cool against her overheated skin, making her arms break out in goosebumps. 

“C’mon, let’s go inside,” Louis says. “I’ve got lots of plans for you while we’re still alone.”

Grinning, Harry takes Louis’ hand in her own and walks back up the beach with her, excited to just spend this time alone with her.

~*~

Louis’ family are the first ones to arrive the next day, just before lunch time. The house is immediately filled with noise and people and Harry loves it. She accepts the hugs that all of Louis’ siblings have for her, especially the big one from Doris, who seems especially happy to see Harry. She kisses the top of her curly red hair and sighs contentedly. Louis shows everyone to their rooms, having set up everything already while Harry was asleep that morning.

“When does everyone else get here?” Lottie asks Harry as she wanders back into the large living room. 

“My parents, along with Liam, Sophia and Willow get here in about an hour. Eleanor and her girlfriend, the one she _still_ won’t tell us who it is, they get here in about two hours. Niall and Zayn don’t get here for a few days yet, though. They’re still in Rome right now, but they’ll join us soon. So until then, it’s just the rest of us.”

Lottie nods. “We’ll have a house full, then.”

“Yeah, we will,” Harry agrees. “It’ll be fun!”

Lottie laughs. “Did I tell you my first video got fifty thousand views?”

“That’s fantastic!” Harry exclaims excitedly. “I’m so proud of you!” She gives Lottie a tight hug and kisses her cheek noisily.

“I’ve done a few more videos since then, too,” Lottie says when Harry lets her go. “I’d love your opinion on them when you’re able?”

Harry nods. “I’ll watch them tonight, I promise.” 

She’s about to say something else when Ernest barrels into her at full speed, almost knocking Harry over. He laughs loudly and makes grabby hands at Harry. She lifts him onto her hip and tickles him with her free hand.

“You’re a cheeky little thing, aren’t you?” she says and he just laughs. 

Jay appears a moment later, looking harried. “Sorry, poppet,” she says. “He’s been a bit squirmy today.”

“It’s fine,” Harry replies. She sets Ernest down on the floor and he walks over to his mum, fist curling into her trouser leg. 

The next few hours are busy with people filtering in and out of the house. Harry steps back and just stays out of the way as best as she can unless she’s needed. The last thing she wants to do is get in someone’s way. 

After her parents, Sophia, Liam and Willow arrive, Harry decides to take the Tomlinson siblings out onto the beach to play in the sand. She keeps the youngest twins close while Lottie takes everyone else into the water to have a play. She sits in the sand under the large beach umbrella and helps Doris and Ernest put sand in their little buckets to build a small sand castle. 

They’re busy having fun when Sophia sits down in one of the chairs nearby. She sighs and Harry looks up, smiling as she sees Willow in her arms. 

“How was your flight?” she asks. 

Sophia looks over and adjusts her big sunglasses. “It was good. This one slept the entire way.” 

“That’s good,” Harry says. Ernest passes Harry his half-filled bucket, so her attention diverts back to him again.

Sophia joins them under the umbrella a few moments later, setting Willow down in between her legs. Willow’s expression changes when she feels the sand on her feet and Harry can’t help but grin. She reaches for the sand, trying to get some in her tiny fist to bring to her mouth but Sophia is quick to catch her.

“Yucky,” she says, opening Willow’s fist to get rid of the sand in it 

“Achoo!” Ernest says excitedly. 

Harry looks up to see Louis squatting down next to Ernest, tugging on his hat. 

“What are you making, Ernie?” Louis asks. He points to his sand filled bucket and then to Doris.

“Sand!” 

“That’s right,” Louis agrees. She pats the sand down and helps him fill another bucket load.

“Achoo, help,” Doris says. 

Harry gets lost in watching Louis playing with her siblings. Liam joins them a few moments later, sitting down in the sand next to Sophia. She tickles Willow’s foot, making her squeal with laughter, kicking her feet and sending sand cascading out around her. Harry loves watching every moment of it.

Soon, everyone seems to be outside, sitting under various umbrellas or in deck chairs under the sun. Robin and Dan join Louis’ other sisters in the water, immediately playing some game with them that Harry can’t make out from this far away.

Jay and Anne are sitting together, chatting, and it warms Harry’s heart to know that her and Louis’ mums get along so well. 

“I’m going for a swim,” Liam says. “They look like they’re having fun.”

“Alright, love,” Sophia says. She tilts her head up and Liam kisses her soundly on the lips, then kisses Willow on top of her hat covered head before taking off her shirt and shorts and running off to the water.

“God she’s fit,” Louis says, breaking Harry’s thoughts. 

“ _Mmhmm_!” Sophia agrees emphatically, a cheesy grin on her face. “She could crack a walnut between her thighs.”

“You’re not wrong,” Louis says. 

Harry shakes her head, unable to stop smiling.

“Where is everyone?” a voice calls out a moment later.

Harry and Louis look up in sync to see Eleanor and someone else walking onto the beach. 

“You made it!” Louis exclaims, getting up. Harry watches as Louis hugs Eleanor and her mouth gapes open when she sees just who is standing with Eleanor. 

“This is my girlfriend,” Eleanor says proudly. 

“Hey, I’m Kendall,” she says with a wave. 

“I’m Louis. And this is my family.”

“Wow, your family could rival mine for how big it is,” Kendall says, looking around at everyone.

“Probably,” Louis agrees. “I’ll introduce you to everyone.” 

Harry stands, dusting herself off. Louis points out to everyone in the ocean, probably to save from overwhelming Kendall by meeting everyone at once. 

“And this is my fiancée, Harry,” Louis says, fondness lacing her tone. She slips her arm low around Harry’s waist, squeezing Harry to her side.

Harry sticks her hand out for Kendall Jenner to shake. “Nice to meet you.”

“You too.” 

“Let me show you to your room,” Louis says, going into full hostess mode again. “We’ve got a pretty full house, but everyone should be comfortable enough in their rooms.”

“Lead the way,” Eleanor says. 

Harry watches the three of them disappear and she blinks a few times to make sure that she isn’t suddenly dreaming or in a different reality. She follows Louis into the house, catching up with them just outside of Eleanor and Kendall’s room. 

“This is cute,” Kendall says and Harry glances around to see everything that Louis has done. 

Of course her fiancée had organised gift baskets for everyone filled with holiday essentials. She’s proud of Louis for her organisational skills. They rival her own at times. 

“This is all lovely, Louis, thank you,” Eleanor says. “Thank you _both_.”

“This was all Louis,” Harry says. “She organised everything.”

Louis shrugs. “It was nothing. _So_. How did you two meet?” 

“We met in Japan, actually,” Eleanor says. “At the start of the year when I went back. Kenny was doing some modelling work and we happened to meet in the pub of the hotel we were both staying at.”

“We kept in contact and then when we met up again in March here in Spain when I had a shoot,” Kendall continues. 

“We _really_ hit it off,” Eleanor says. “And we’ve kind of been together since.”

“Not ‘kind of’, we _have_ ,” Kendall corrects, her tone fond. “It’s kind of private, so we don’t want anyone to really know about it yet. Not the paps or anything, you know?”

Louis nods. “No one here will be saying anything. I’ll make sure to talk to my sisters, too.”

“Cool,” Kendall says. “I’m going to take a shower. I still smell like airplane.”

“We’re going out for dinner tonight,” Harry says. “If you don’t want to come, we understand.”

“Oh, no, dinner is totally fine,” Kendall replies. 

“We’ll leave you both to it,” Louis says. She nods at them both and closes the door behind them. Harry starts towards the rest of the house but Louis catches her hand and drags her towards their room. 

“Were you expecting that?” Harry whispers as soon as their bedroom door shuts behind them.

“No!” Louis exclaims. “I knew El was shagging someone, but I had no idea it was Kendall bloody Jenner.”

Harry snorts and immediately covers her mouth with her hand. “I didn’t even know that Kendall is gay.”

Louis shrugs. “Almost everyone in Hollywood is gay, aren’t they?”

“Can we consider her Hollywood?” Harry asks, curious. 

“I guess? Anyway, come kiss me, I feel like I haven’t seen you for hours.”

Harry giggles and crowds into Louis’ space. She cups Louis’ face and kisses her slowly, feeling it all the way down to her toes. She sighs softly, deepening the kiss and pushing Louis towards their bed, eager for a few moments alone.

A knock on their door interrupts them and Harry sighs, resting her head against Louis’ collarbone. 

“Come in,” Louis calls. Harry moves so she’s standing next to Louis and she straightens her top. 

“Hi, love,” Jay says poking her head in. “I’m just popping to the shops with Anne. Ernie and Doris are down for their nap, too. Can you take the baby monitor? Dan is still playing with the girls outside.”

“Sure,” Louis says, accepting the baby monitor from her mum. 

Jay smiles and gives Louis a quick hug. “Thank you, poppet. Do either of you want anything while we’re out?”

Harry shakes her head. “No, thank you, we stocked up on everything we thought everyone would need.”

“More wine would be good,” Louis says. “I have a feeling we’ll need it.”

“Alright,” Jay says, letting go of Louis. “We won’t be too long.” She winks at both of them and closes the door behind her. 

“C’mon, let’s go outside and build sandcastles,” Harry says, sliding her hand into Louis’. She squeezes their joined hands softly and leads Louis from their room.

As they walk down the hall, they hear a high pitched giggle closely followed by a moan. Harry catches Louis’ gaze and bursts out laughing.

“These next two weeks are going to be _interesting_ ,” Harry says, unable to stop smiling. “I really can’t wait to see what happens.”

~*~

“…just don’t bug her, okay?” Louis finishes. Lottie, Félicité, Daisy and Phoebe all nod. “El and Kendall will only be here for the week, too, don’t forget.” Louis has pulled them aside to ask them not to bother Kendall too much. Harry got it – Kendall is a different kind of celebrity than what they are used to. But seeing Daisy and Phoebe’s faces when they realised just who was on holiday with them was pretty priceless.

“Alright, kids,” Jay says as she walks into the living room. “Into the car, we’re leaving now.”

The Tomlinsons all pile into one of the vehicles that they’ve hired for the duration of their stay. 

Once everyone is in the various cars, Louis drives off first, leading them to the restaurant she has booked them into for dinner. They are led to a private function room, and Kendall is able to enter through the back, which Harry thinks is kind of the restaurant staff to do for her.

The table is huge. It is a long table that had a really home-y vibe to it, Harry thinks. There are three high chairs for the twins and Willow to sit in, and Harry immediately gravitates towards that end of the table, figuring she’d lend a helping hand.

“I’ve got it,” Anne says before Harry can choose her seat. 

Harry opens her mouth to protest but Louis’ warm hand falls to the small of her back and she leads them to the other end of the table. Harry barely resists pouting as she sits down. Louis sits at the head of the table and Harry sits on her right side. Everyone else find spots and sit down, too. Kendall and Eleanor end up directly across from Harry and Lottie.

“Gina _raved_ about this place for months after coming here,” Louis says.

“I know, she kept telling me that the cream catalana was the best she’d ever had,” Eleanor says, unfolding her napkin to lay across her lap. 

“I’ve had the chocolate and churros before and that’s pretty good,” Kendall says. “I’ve never been here before, though.”

Harry shoots Lottie a look and Lottie just shrugs, spreading her napkin over her lap, too. 

A server comes around to hand everyone menus and Louis immediately orders wine, water, and fruit juice for their table. Everyone chatters around them, several different conversations going on at once. 

Harry looks down at her menu, trying to decide what to have. Everything just sounds delicious to her. 

Their server, Sara, comes back with the drinks Louis requested and starts at one end of the table to take orders. By the time Sara reaches Harry, she’s decided on what she wants for dinner. Sara takes Louis’ order last and Harry immediately thinks that she wants to change hers. She bites her lip but sits back in her chair, deciding to stick to what she’s ordered for once. 

“Harry,” Eleanor says as she picks her glass of wine up to have a sip. “I was telling Kenny how you said you were looking into modelling. Are you still interested in doing that?”

Harry glances between Eleanor and Kendall and raises one shoulder. “Sort of, but not really. I’ve had some bad paparazzi experiences in the last few months which makes me not want to get into something so high profile.” She feels Louis’ foot press against her own under the table and she glances at her fiancée, giving her a brief smile.

“Yeah, that’s one of the biggest downsides,” Kendall says, picking up a bread roll and breaking it with her bare hands. “But there’s loads of good things, too. I can set you up with some people in the business, if you like?”

“Umm,” Harry glances in her mum’s direction and then back to Kendall. “Can I get back to you on that? I’m focusing on more of the charity work I’m doing at the moment.”

“Yeah, sure,” Kendall says with a nod. “Here, let me give you my contact details in case you change your mind. If you do, it’d be fun to do a shoot with you. Especially since we’re the same height.” 

Harry flushes a little but passes her phone over to Kendall for her to input her details into. “Thank you,” she says. Kendall puckers her lips in a kissy-face and Harry realises a moment later that she’s taking a selfie on her phone to save as her contact photo.

“Just in case you forget who I am,” Kendall says as she hands Harry’s phone back. 

“Unlikely,” Harry replies. “But thank you.”

Louis reaches under the table and squeezes Harry’s hand. “That’s really lovely of you, Kendall, thank you.”

Kendall shrugs. “It’s cool.”

Harry picks up her wine glass and takes a sip, just for something to do with her hands. “So, Eleanor, how’s Bruce?”

“He’s _amazing_! He’s literally the best dog ever,” Eleanor says, perking right up. She pulls out her phone and taps away on the screen before turning it to face Harry. “Look at that face. Isn’t he just perfect?”

Harry grins as she looks down at the photo, Lottie leaning over her shoulder to look at the photos, too. “He’s so precious. I need to give him hugs when we get back home.”

“He’ll _love_ that,” Eleanor replies. 

Harry swipes through to the next photo, cooing at the adorable face of Bruce. He’s already grown so much since Harry had last seen him, too. She swipes again and is faced with a photo of Eleanor and Kendall kissing. She immediately swipes back to the photo of Bruce, but she knows that Lottie has seen the photo too. She locks the phone and passes it back to Eleanor. 

“He’s such a beautiful puppy,” Harry says. 

“He really is,” Eleanor says happily. 

Harry picks up her wine again and hisses to Lottie out of the corner of her mouth, “We can’t say anything about that.”

“Wasn’t planning on it,” Lottie whispers back. 

Harry bumps her shoulder into Lottie’s, earning a smile from her. She grins and gives her attention to Lottie completely. “Do you have any more videos planned for over the summer?”

Lottie nods. “Yeah, I do,” she begins, “I’m trying to build up an online portfolio. It’ll really help when I’m asked at uni what I did over the summer, and it will help me build a following. I’ve been asked to do a couple of sponsorships so far. Mum has been the one taking care of all of the details and contracts, which is good.”

“Niall’s done all that herself for years now. She’s incredibly business smart,” Harry says. “She’d be more than happy to help you if you need it. And you know Louis will help with anything business related, too. Niall’s just done social media influencer business stuff for years, so she probably understands that a bit better than Louis does, I mean.”

“Thanks,” Lottie says, giving Harry a grateful smile. “Does she get asked to do weird things like that flat tummy tea stuff?”

“Yeah, I think so,” Harry replies, nodding. “She told them to stuff it. That she wasn’t promoting crap like that which, and I quote, ‘benefits off the insecurities that the beauty industry and patriarchy put on young girls and women in the first place’.”

Lottie snorts and pushes back her hair with her hand. “I love how assertive Niall is. She doesn’t take anyone’s shit.”

“She really doesn’t,” Harry agrees. “You should’ve seen her when some idiot tried to troll her online. She’s as fierce as Louis is when it comes to the things she loves and cares about.”

“That’s so cool. I wish I could be like her,” Lottie says.

“Give it a few days and you’ll be able to spend some time with her and Zayn.” Harry can’t wait for her two best friends to arrive so they can all enjoy the beach and sun together. She hasn’t seen them in more than a month and she misses them so much.

“But if you don’t want to promote stuff like that flat tummy tea or anything, just politely decline,” Harry says. “That’s what I do.”

“Do you get asked to do a lot of stuff like that?” Lottie wonders.

Harry shrugs. She has another sip of her wine and smiles when Louis refills her glass. “Occasionally. It gets a bit annoying when I’m flooded with requests. But I just say no and ignore any follow up requests.”

Lottie hums and nods. “I’d like to stick to stuff that’s on-brand for me. Does that make sense?”

“Of course it does,” Harry replies. 

Lottie gives her a relieved smile. “Good,” she says. “I already had a few hundred thousand Instagram and Twitter followers because of Louis, but I don’t want to be promoting stuff to them that I don’t care about, you know?”

Harry nods. “That’s a good mindset to have,” she says emphatically. “If you stick to that, you won’t go wrong.”

“Thanks, Harry,” Lottie says. “You’re really good to talk to.”

Flushing, Harry ducks her head and smiles. “You are too.”

“I’m glad you’re going to be my sister-in-law.” 

Harry turns awkwardly in her seat and hugs Lottie tightly. “Me too, Lottie, me too.”

Lottie pats Harry’s arm as they part and Harry catches Louis glancing at them with a raised eyebrow. Harry just gives her a smile and picks up her wine glass again.

Moments later, their server starts bringing out their dinners, starting with the younger children. Harry’s stomach grumbles from all of the delicious scents wafting off the food. It isn’t too much longer before her own dinner is being put in front of her and she tucks in with enthusiasm. She can’t help but moan at the first mouthful of food. It’s absolutely delicious. She’s so glad she didn’t change her order after all.

Or that’s what she thinks until Louis’ dinner is set down in front of her. Before she really thinks about it, her fork is stabbing into a piece of Louis’ dinner and she’s bringing it to her lips before Louis can protest. 

“Cheeky,” Louis says fondly. Harry presses her foot against Louis’ under the table in response.

“…I’m so glad I brought my camera with me,” Kendall says and Harry looks up, catching her gaze. “There’s so many amazing things I want to get photos of.”

“Harry’s into photography, too,” Louis says. “Maybe you two can go exploring together while we’re here?”

“Yeah, sure,” Kendall says. “I’m always looking for new things to see. Photography is such a creative outlet, don’t you think?”

Harry nods in agreement. “Yeah, it is,” she says. “I have scrapbooks filled with photos at home.”

“That’s so cool,” Kendall replies. “I just keep my photos on my laptop to look at when I can.”

“I like taking the time to write out memories and things like that when I scrapbook,” Harry says. “It takes time, but I find it really relaxing.”

“You should’ve seen the scrapbook Harry did Louis for Christmas,” Eleanor says to Kendall. “It was amazing. It must’ve taken _weeks_ to do. I could’ve sworn a professional had done it, it was _that_ good.” Harry feels pride swell in her chest at the compliment. 

She and Eleanor have been getting along better since before Christmas, and with Eleanor out of the country for a fair amount of the year, it’s been easier on Harry’s mind. But hearing Eleanor compliment her makes Harry glad that she didn’t ask Louis to fire her when Louis offered. 

“Yeah? Do you have any photos?” Kendall asks.

“I think I’ve got a few saved,” Harry replies. She sets down her utensils and unlocks her phone. She quickly moves the photos to a new album so that Kendall doesn’t accidentally see something that she shouldn’t, like Harry just did with Eleanor’s photos. She passes her phone over and Kendall takes it, looking at the photos with interest. 

“You’re really creative,” Kendall says as she passes Harry’s phone back. 

“Thank you,” Harry replies. She catches Louis’ gaze and soft smile that are meant just for her. She reaches over and lays her hand on Louis’ arm for a moment before turning back to her dinner. 

The conversation shifts to something else and Harry just listens to everyone talk. Lottie’s chatting to Félicité sitting next to her. Harry finishes her dinner and picks up her wine glass again, which mysteriously has more liquid in it again. If she didn’t know any better, she’d think that Louis was trying to get her drunk. She doesn’t care, though. The only thing that concerns her is that she’s bit of a horny drunk. And they’re surrounded by family members that Harry would rather not show that side to right now. Or ever. _Definitely_ ever. 

She feels warm from the wine, the food, and the company. Her skin tingles pleasantly and she can’t help but smile. 

“I’m going for a wee,” Harry says, standing up. She teeters for half a second before righting herself and wandering off towards the toilets.

It doesn’t take long for Harry to catch her breath and relieve herself. She figures that she should switch to water now if she doesn’t want a headache in the morning. She hums as she washes her hands thoroughly. The door opens and Lottie walks in. 

“ _Hey_!” Harry says happily, like she hasn’t just been sitting next to Lottie at dinner. “Tonight has been so good. Don’t you think?”

The stall door closes on Lottie’s laugh. “I think you’re a bit tipsy, Harry,” she says. 

“Mm, just a bit,” Harry agrees. She glances over her shoulder to make sure that Lottie’s stall door is still shut and she whips out her phone, opening Snapchat with quick fingers. She turns her phone on silent and stretches out her arm to take a few selfies, making sure that her cleavage is on display. She sends the photos to Louis, one after the other, enjoying the thrill that it sends through her knowing that Louis is sitting with friends and family and getting these photos. 

She locks her phone just as Lottie exits the toilet and heads towards the sinks. 

“Kendall seems nice,” Lottie says as she washes her hands.

“She does,” Harry agrees. She pulls some paper towel from the dispenser and holds it for Lottie. “I was a bit surprised to see her and Eleanor together, though. But hey, if they make each other happy.”

Lottie nods and she accepts the paper towel from Harry. “I don’t know Eleanor that well but she looks happy.”

Harry pauses and thinks. Lottie is right, she realises. “She does. She really does.”

Lottie smiles and opens her clutch to reapply her lip gloss. Harry watches her and turns to the mirror to fluff up her own hair. 

“Let’s take a selfie,” Harry says, pulling out her phone. There isn’t any response Snapchats from Louis yet, but she ignores that in favour of opening her camera. She and Lottie both make kissy-faces at the camera, and she takes a few photos in sequence.

“I look _so_ short next to you,” Lottie says with a huff. “Why do you have to be so tall?”

Harry grins and throws an arm around Lottie’s shoulders in a half-hug. “Sorry,” she says. 

The outside door opens again and Louis walks in. 

“What are you two up to?” she asks, her tone bemused, as she walks into a stall.

“Having a wee, and taking selfies,” Harry replies easily. Her pulse spikes and she can feel her neck growing warmer just at the sight of Louis. 

“I’ll see you back out there,” Lottie says and she picks up her clutch. “Send me those photos, will you?”

Harry nods and turns to her phone. Louis exits the toilet and washes her hands while Harry messages Lottie.

“How’re you feeling, princess?” Louis asks. 

“Good,” Harry replies, her gaze raking over Louis’ body. “How are you?”

“Good,” Louis echoes. There’s a split second where they just look at each other before they’re kissing hotly. Harry doesn’t know who initiated the kiss, she just knows that she’s being pressed up against the counter. She moans into Louis’ mouth, trying to get closer to her. Louis’ slides one hand into her hair and the other grips at Harry’s hip. 

“Fuck, _Lou_ ,” Harry breathes. She’s about to reach for Louis’ arse when the outside door opens again and Eleanor walks in. 

“People have noticed that you’re not at the table,” she says pointedly before going into a stall. Harry pouts.

“Spoilsport,” she mutters under her breath.

“Heard that!” Eleanor calls out.

Harry makes a face at the closed door and then gives Louis one last, lingering look before exiting the toilets completely.

Lottie gives her a funny look when Harry sits down and Kendall laughs. 

“Your lipstick is smudged,” she says, gesturing to her own face to show where Harry’s make-up is ruined.

“Here,” Lottie says softly. She picks up Harry’s napkin and dabs a corner in one of the glasses of water. She carefully wipes the smeared lipstick off Harry’s face.

“Thank you,” Harry says. 

“Older women are hot, aren’t they?” Kendall says, catching Harry’s attention again. “I know there’s not _that_ much of an age difference, but Eleanor’s older than me and she’s just _so hot_.”

Harry coughs, unsure on how she should respond to that. Especially since Louis’ sister is sitting right next to her. She may be tipsy, but she isn’t silly enough to talk about Louis like that, especially in front of Lottie.

“Louis’ a bit older than you, isn’t she?” Kendall asks.

“Only a few years,” Harry replies. She picks up a fresh glass of water to drink and takes a long sip, trying to clear her head. 

“I love being with a woman who is experienced like El is,” Kendall begins, leaning over the table like she’s about to divulge a particularly juicy secret. And it’s then that Harry realises that she might not be the only one who gets horny when she’s tipsy, if what Kendall is expressing is anything to go by. “She just _gets_ it, you know? Like I don’t even have to say to her what I like in bed because she’s very intuitive. Like, yeah. It’s _awesome_.”

Harry nods dumbly. She can tell that Lottie is feeling the same shock that she is at Kendall’s over-sharing about her sex life. Their server comes back with everyone’s desserts. “Oh thank god,” she mutters. 

Louis and Eleanor re-join them a moment later and Harry immediately tucks into her dessert to occupy herself.

Kendall has the churros and melted chocolate, which looks delicious, but she’s offering a piece to Eleanor and looking at her like she’s going to shag her right there on the floor and Harry stops, her fork half-way to her mouth. She wonders if that’s what she looks like when she’s unable to stop staring at Louis.

“You look nothing like that,” Lottie assures her. “Yes, you said that out loud.”

“Oops,” Harry says, embarrassed. “Did anyone else hear me?”

Lottie shakes her head. “No, you muttered it.”

“Thank you,” Harry replies, grateful. “For not thinking I’m weird.”

Lottie laughs, not unkindly, and she bumps her shoulder into Harry’s. “As long as you don’t start talking about _your_ sex life with my sister, then you won’t be that weird,”

Harry grins and turns back to finish her dessert.

Once everyone has finished eating, Louis pays for dinner and everyone starts to leave. Each car is thankfully driven by someone who hasn’t been drinking, which means that everyone gets back to the house safely.

Harry watches as Eleanor and Kendall giggle into each other’s shoulders before disappearing completely. She ambles around the living room while everyone else wanders off to their rooms, as it is a bit late. 

With a yawn, Harry makes her way to her room, stripping out of her dress the second the door closes behind her. She hangs it up and makes her way to the ensuite bathroom to clean up. 

“Dinner was good,” Louis says, suddenly appearing behind Harry in the bathroom. She kisses Harry’s bare shoulder and Harry closes her eyes. 

“It was,” she agrees. “I’m so tired now.”

“Shower first, love, then bed,” Louis says. 

Harry yawns again. “Okay,” she agrees. She lets Louis unhook her bra and tug off her knickers, stepping out of them before stepping into the shower. She barely remembers showering at all.

And the moment her head hits the pillow, she’s fast asleep.

~*~

“Shh, everyone will hear you,” Louis whispers, her breathing laboured and her face flushed beautifully.

Harry grins, sliding her hand down Louis’ naked back. “That’s their fault for listening then,” she replies, trying to whisper, too, despite being alone in their room. “Besides, _you_ are the one who woke me up wanting sex because you’d had a wet dream.”

“I didn’t have a _wet_ dream,” Louis says pointedly as she rolls her hips down. Harry doesn’t think she’ll ever tire of seeing Louis riding her. “It was a sexy dream. There’s a difference.”

“If you say so,” Harry replies. “C’mon, let me fuck you properly.”

“I thought you were?” 

Harry grins and pushes up again, enjoying the moans falling from Louis’ lips. Louis falls silent, her eyes closing and her mouth dropping open as Harry finally gets a proper rhythm going. She winces when the bed squeaks and stops her movements completely.

“Why’d you stop?” Louis asks, panting, her forehead damp with sweat. 

“The bed is squeaking,” Harry replies. “Our room is right next to Liam and Sophia’s – they’ll hear us having sex!”

Louis rolls her eyes. She leans over, pushing Harry onto her back. She gets a decent grip on the headboard and fucks herself down onto the dildo. “This’ll be over before they wake up,” she breathes. “Kiss me.”

Harry surges upwards, kissing Louis hotly. She grips Louis’ hips, unable to do anything but hold her as she fucks herself on the toy. The air around them is hot and sticky and Harry loves it. Their kiss breaks and Louis drops her head to Harry’s collarbone, breathing heavily. Harry kisses every patch of skin that she can reach, the salty taste of sweat tangy on her tongue. 

“Fuck,” Louis groans, bucking down even harder. She lets out a long, low moan as she orgasms, her hips moving until she’s completely rode through it. She collapses against Harry, who happily wraps her arms around Louis’ middle holding her close. 

She shifts, letting the toy slide out of Louis, who moans at the loss. With quick hands, Harry takes the harness off and throws it to the end of the bed. She crawls on top of Louis and kisses her softly, enjoying the slow kisses that come with having orgasms. She loses herself in the moment, enjoying being this close to Louis. 

“You’re amazing,” Harry breathes, peppering kisses down Louis’ chest. She moves lower until she’s face to face with Louis’ dagger tattoo, her tongue tracing the black ink. She lets her teeth scrape over it, biting and sucking on the tattoo that brings her so much joy. “Can I eat you out, Lou?”

“Mmm,” Louis mumbles sleepily. “Alright.”

Her legs part and Harry settles between them, taking in the beautiful sight of Louis’ swollen labia. She moans to herself as she licks a fat stripe up Louis’ wet pussy, tasting her completely. Louis lets out a breathy sigh as Harry sucks on her clit, flicking over the sensitive nub with her tongue. This will never not make Harry wetter than anything else. She loves being able to do this to Louis – to have her mouth on her and make her come from that alone. It’s absolutely intoxicating.

She really gets into it, eyes closed as she loses herself in eating Louis out. Louis’ hand slides into her hair, tugging on it. Just _this_ side of too painful. It spurs Harry on. She knows she’s making more noise that Louis is, unable to stop herself. She grips Louis’ thighs, fingers digging in to the soft flesh. She sucks on her clit again, eliciting the most beautiful sounds from Louis for her efforts. 

“Right there, princess,” Louis moans. Her fingers tighten in Harry’s hair and she ruts her pussy down into Harry’s eager mouth. 

Louis’ thighs start to tremble around Harry’s head and her sharp intake of breath is the only warning Harry gets before Louis orgasms. Harry licks Louis through it, enjoying the shakes and twitches of Louis’ body underneath her tongue. She lets her hands roam up Louis’ sweaty body as she licks Louis completely clean. 

She presses one last kiss to Louis’ clit before moving to collapse next to her. Louis’ hand is between her legs before Harry even has to ask. She knows she isn’t going to last long. She’s been wet since Louis woke her up with the most filthy kiss and murmurs of what her dream entailed. Harry digs her fingers into the bedsheets, her orgasm coming hard and fast. She trembles all over, rutting down into Louis’ skilled hand. She slumps against the bed a few moments later, completely spent. She can’t even open her eyes but she knows that Louis is grinning at her. 

“You’re beautiful,” Louis says. Her lips touch Harry’s shoulder, lingering there for a few long moments. “We should shower, we’re pretty gross.”

“In a minute,” Harry says, her breathing still laboured. “You know, when I can move my legs.”

Louis chuckles and curls around Harry. “Alright.”

They’re in the empty kitchen after they’ve showered, Harry opting to just put on a bathing suit instead of underwear, knowing that she’s probably going to be going out into the ocean after she’s had breakfast.

She’s feeding Louis little pieces of fruit when Liam walks in, looking sleepy and sleep rumpled. 

“Good morning!” she says cheerily. Liam grunts in response, heading straight for the coffee jug to pour herself a mug. 

Harry turns back to Louis, who is sitting on the island, her feet hooked around Harry’s back to keep her close. She’s a little taller like this, almost the same height as Harry. And though Harry knows that Louis will never admit it, she _loves_ being this tall. Harry teases Louis with another piece of fruit and Louis leans forward just as Harry does, the fruit between them. They kiss around it, probably making some obscene noise as they do.

Liam groans and not in a good way. Louis breaks the kiss and turns to look at her best friend.

“What’s up, Li?” Louis asks. Harry turns in Louis’ embrace so her back is against the counter. Louis drapes an arm over Harry’s shoulders, keeping her close.

“I don’t fancy seeing you both snogging in the kitchen when you woke me up with your shagging,” Liam snaps. “I’m _exhausted_ and we’re meant to be on _holiday_.”

“Er, sorry about that,” Louis apologises. “We tried to be quiet.”

“Well you didn’t try hard enough,” Liam replies with a full body sigh. “You’re lucky Soph was already awake to feed Willow or she wouldn’t have been happy, either.”

“Sorry, Li,” Louis says sincerely. “We’ll keep it down in future.”

“Thank you,” Liam says. She brings the mug to her lips and takes another long drink, sighing after she swallows. “I’m going to have a shower and then do some yoga.”

“Oh! Can I join you for yoga?” Harry asks eagerly. 

“Yeah, if you like. Meet you outside in half an hour?”

Harry nods. “Alright.”

Liam drains her mug and exits the kitchen. Harry turns back around in Louis’ embrace and leans in for another kiss. 

“I’d better go,” Louis says. “Mum and I are spending the morning together.”

Harry smiles. “Yeah? What are you doing?”

“Breakfast, actually,” Louis says. “I’m taking her out and then we’re going to do some shopping, probably.”

“Have fun,” Harry says. She gives Louis a smacking kiss before picking up her empty bowl to wash it. Louis pats her on the bum once before she exits the kitchen, making Harry smile fondly.

Yoga with Liam is surprisingly relaxing. Harry enjoys the soothing sound of Liam’s voice as she guides them through the motions. There’s no one on the beach just yet, so it’s perfect for them. There’s a light breeze, and the sun isn’t high enough in the sky to be too hot either. It leaves Harry feeling quite wonderful. 

Liam’s yoga playlist adds to the soothing atmosphere, making Harry feel impossibly peaceful. She moves her body with Liam’s softly spoken instructions, her muscles adjusting to each pose with ease. They end in child’s pose and Harry rests her forehead on the mat for a few long moments before rolling onto her back. She closes her eyes and just absorbs the feeling of being so calm. 

“You’re quite good at this,” Liam says after a few long moments. 

Harry cracks an eye open and turns her head to look at Liam, who is lying on her own mat facing Harry. “Thank you,” she says, “I started doing yoga a few years ago – it helps me destress from everything. Mostly exams this year.”

“That’s when I started, too,” Liam says. “But in uni. It was the only thing that I found worked for me. Until I started smoking, that is.”

“And now that you’ve quit you’re back to yoga?”

Liam chuckles. The sound is rich and beautiful. “Yeah, something like that.”

“Was it hard giving something like that up?” Harry asks, stretching her legs in the air just because she can. 

“A little,” Liam says. Then she sighs heavily. “A _lot_ actually. I still find myself reaching for my smokes when I’m stressed. But I don’t want to be a mum who smokes around my baby. It’s just not worth it to me.”

“You’re a strong woman, Liam,” Harry says as she lowers her legs so they’re flat on the mat. “It takes a lot of courage to let go of something that you both enjoyed and relied on so much.”

Liam turns to face Harry and gives her a warm smile. “Thanks. I think my daughter is well worth the sacrifice.”

Harry grins. “Me too,” she agrees, “I love her little face so much.”

Liam laughs. “Me too.”

~*~

“… _there in two days_.”

Harry looks up as Louis walks into the house. It’s early evening still. They’ve all just finished a lovely barbecue dinner that Dan had cooked. Harry has just finished helping Jay give Doris and Ernest their baths and helped put them to bed. She figured that she could get in a couple of chapters of her book before turning in for the night, so she’s curled up on the sofa with her Kindle in hand. Everyone else is outside still, chatting while drinking, and Harry can hear the filtered sounds of their voices every now and then when someone laughs. It makes her smile and feel very comforted at the same time. She flips over the cover on the Kindle and puts it to the side so she can listen to Louis and Niall’s conversation properly.

She can hear Niall’s voice coming through the phone on Facetime and leans over Louis’ shoulder the moment she’s within reach so she can say hi to her friend.

“Hey, Haz,” Niall says happily, waving at the camera. Harry waves back.

“When are you getting here?” she asks.

“Just telling Louis that it’ll be two days,” Niall replies. 

“I can’t wait to see you both!” Harry exclaims. She takes the phone off Louis and settles back on the couch, holding the phone out so she can see Niall properly and so that Niall can see her, too. 

“Same, we’ve got loads to tell you,” Niall says. She shifts and the camera pans to Zayn.

“I’ve got some sick new tattoos I want to show you,” she says. Harry bounces in her seat excitedly.

“Me too! I mean, I want you to see them in person. Photos just don’t do them justice.”

“The photo of the rose looked sick, though,” Zayn comments. 

“I got another tattoo today,” Louis says from across the room. Harry’s head snaps up and she looks at Louis with wide-eyes. Louis has been out most of the day with her mum and Lottie, and she hadn’t said anything when they got back, either. Harry feels a little put out. 

“What?” 

Louis wanders back over to the sofa and sits down next to Harry. “Yeah,” she says, lifting her wrist. There’s a small love heart tattooed on the outside of her left wrist. “Mum, Lottie and I got matching tattoos.”

Harry reaches out to touch it, her tongue darting out of her lips as she does.

“And I think that’s our cue to go,” Niall says. Harry promptly flushes. She had forgotten that they were on the phone. 

“Sorry,” Harry says apologetically. They say their goodbyes and Harry disconnects the call. 

“Do you like it?” Louis asks. “It was spontaneous. Lottie spotted the shop and then we were walking in and getting matching tattoos.”

With her hands finally free, Harry reaches over and traces over the small, uncovered little red love heart. It’s hard not to just jump on Louis right here. But the lounge room is a public area and she doesn’t fancy getting caught shagging her fiancée by her mum. Or Louis’ mum. Or anyone in Louis’ family, really. Or Eleanor, for that matter.

“Princess?” Louis says softly. “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you when I got back, but –”

“I _love_ it,” Harry interrupts. She licks her lips again and then lowers her head, pressing a kiss to the tiny tattoo. “We should go to our room. Like _right_ now.”

Louis laughs. As they stand, Eleanor, Kendall, Lottie and Félicité walk in, chatting and laughing. Harry tugs on Louis’ hand, eager to get to their room and have some alone time with Louis, but Lottie says something and then they’re not leaving. It takes all of Harry’s strength to not pout or even growl out her frustration. 

Unfortunately, Harry’s arousal tapers off with each passing second. She stays pressed to Louis’ side, though, laying her hand on Louis’ thigh, just to keep close to her. 

Half an hour later, Eleanor gets up and comes back with two bottles of wine and half a dozen glasses. 

“None for Félicité,” Louis automatically says. “She’s fifteen.” 

“If Mum says I can, will you let me?” Félicité asks. 

Louis hesitates for a moment but nods. “I’ll go ask Mum,” she says, getting up. 

Harry takes her own glass from Eleanor and has a long sip. “This is nice,” she comments, impressed. 

“Thanks,” Eleanor says. “I went wine tasting in France a couple of months ago and got a bit drunk. But this was the best wine I have _ever_ tasted.”

“It’s delicious, babe,” Kendall says, leaning into Eleanor’s side.

It’s still a bit startling to see Eleanor so happy with Kendall. She had got used to seeing Eleanor looking so sour-faced. She didn’t realise that Eleanor was probably just lonely. But seeing her and Kendall together is bringing out a whole new side of Eleanor that Harry finds that she can really relate to. And it’s nice to see her so happy, too. 

“Mum says you can have one glass,” Louis says as she re-enters the living room. Félicité’s face lights up and she eagerly pours herself a drink.

Louis shakes her head fondly and sits back down next to Harry, picking up her own glass and having a sip. “Ooh, El, this is _good_!”

Eleanor beams. “French wine will _always_ be my favourite.”

“Wine tastes _weird_ ,” Félicité says, her face screwed up in disgust. 

Louis laughs. “Don’t drink it then, Fizz.”

Félicité looks torn. “I’ll try it again in a minute,” she decides. “If it’s still gross, you can have it.”

“Alright,” Louis agrees. 

Lottie takes over the conversation, telling their little group about her, Louis, and Jay’s tattoo experience from that morning. 

“I want more,” Lottie says. “Just a few more little ones.”

“Me too,” Harry agrees. “I’ve only got three but I want more.”

“I need to take a selfie with my tattoo,” Lottie says a moment later. She sets her wine glass down on the coffee table and pulls out her phone, trying to get the best angle. 

“Here, I’ll take the photo, if you like,” Harry says after Lottie exclaims that she can’t get a proper photo. It’s a bit of a struggle to get the _perfect_ angle, but Harry eventually manages it and she’s extremely pleased with the photos she takes. Lottie is, too, if the look on her face is anything to go by.

“I’m definitely uploading this one to Instagram,” Lottie says, showing her choice to Harry. 

“I got a tattoo today, too,” Kendall says. She downs the rest of her wine and winks at Eleanor before pulling out her bottom lip.

Harry leans forward, trying to see the tattoo that is on the inside of Kendall’s bottom lip. The ink is dark, in stark contrast to the redness of her inner lip. Harry can’t make out what the tattoo is, but she can’t help but think that must’ve been a really awkward place to get tattooed. 

“Does that say _meow_?” Louis asks as she leans over.

“Yeah, it does,” Kendall replies excitedly. “You know why? Because that’s where the pussy goes!” she giggles drunkenly. 

Harry bites back a laugh when Louis gives Kendall a sharp look before glancing to her younger sisters.

“It’s alright, Louis, I know that pussy is just another word for fanny,” Félicité says, rolling her eyes. 

“I know you do,” Louis replies softly. She’s clearly holding something back, going into protective big sister mode, as she so often does around her siblings. 

Kendall pours herself another drink and sips it happily.

“Did it hurt?” Lottie asks.

“Yup!” Kendall replies. “But it’s worth it. Sometimes the pain is _good_ , you know?”

Harry stays silent. The last thing she wants is to talk about how _much_ she likes the pain – especially in front of Louis’ sisters. 

Just thinking about it sends Harry’s pulse racing. She feels warm all over from the wine she’s had, and from her earlier spike in arousal that is coming back with a vengeance. She sips on her wine, not meeting anyone’s gaze as Kendall talks about her tattoo. 

The conversation changes topics to Lottie’s make-up, which Harry is thankful for. She isn’t sure that she’d be able to handle much more talk about tattoos _and_ be able to keep her hands off Louis. 

“You should do my make-up right now! My sister, Kylie, is really into make-up, too!” Kendall exclaims excitedly. “Your photos are so good!” She’s moved to sit next to Lottie and is scrolling through photos on her phone. 

“Let me go get my kit,” Lottie says. She disappears and Harry turns to Louis, licking her lips. 

“I’ll be right back,” she says. She gets up and heads to the bathroom. She quickly relieves herself and then splashes water on her face, hoping that it will cool her down. 

With one last glance at her reflection in the mirror, Harry decides that she looks decidedly unrumpled enough to re-join the others. She takes her place next to Louis and surreptitiously lays her hand on Louis’ thigh, digging her fingers in ever so slightly. Louis’ hand covers her own, lacing their fingers together. She shoots Harry a look and gives her a smile so soft that it has Harry’s insides practically melting. She automatically leans over and kisses Louis lovingly.

“You have really nice skin,” Lottie says, breaking the spell. Harry glances over to where Lottie and Kendall are now sitting together, Lottie’s hands working some make-up magic on Kendall’s face.

“Thank you,” Kendall replies. “I have a really good health regimen that my personal trainer makes me stick to.”

“Eyes up,” Lottie instructs.

Harry sits back, snuggling into Louis’ side as she watches Lottie work with sure hands. 

Félicité nudges Harry’s leg from where she’s now sitting on the carpeted floor, and she shows Harry her phone. “You’ve passed five million followers on Instagram.”

Harry blinks and takes Félicité’s offered phone. “ _What_?”

“I think it just happened,” Félicité says. “Congratulations.”

Harry blinks as she looks at the numbers on the screen. _Five million_ Instagram followers. That is a ridiculous amount, she thinks. She doesn’t even know how to start comprehending that. 

As she passes Félicité back her phone, her own buzzes on the coffee table. She leans forwards to pick it up and she sees a text from Niall, congratulating her. Because of course Niall would keep tabs on these things. She’s sweet like that.

‘ _Congratulations on 5 mil! You’re half way to my count now_!’ a series of smiley and love heart emojis follow the text. Harry can’t help but smile at that.

“Congratulations, love,” Louis says from next to her. Her warm hand smooths over Harry’s back, causing her to automatically lean back into Louis’ touch.

“I reached forty million the other week,” Kendall says. “It’s insane, isn’t it?”

Harry nods dumbly. “I’m a bit gobsmacked.”

“You should do something cute to celebrate,” Kendall says. “Get Lottie to do your make-up and have a photo shoot! That’ll be so cool.”

Lottie glances over at Harry and smiles at her. “I think you should go for it,” she says. 

Harry can’t help but return the smile. “Alright,” she finds herself agreeing. 

“I’ll set something up,” Louis says, tapping away on her phone. “We can do it tomorrow.”

“Thank you,” Harry says, pressing her shoulder into Louis’. She ducks her head when Louis gives her a look that is nothing but pure love. 

“You deserve it,” Louis says softly, so only Harry can hear. “You use your platform for yourself, and to do good things with. I’m proud of you.”

Harry feels warmth spreading inside of her at Louis’ words, and she feels giddy at the prospect of what tomorrow will bring.

~*~

It turns out doing a last minute photo shoot is _exhausting_. Harry’s been up for a lot longer than she thought she would be, having had an early start again. She joined Liam for some yoga on the beach and had a lovely breakfast with her mum, but that was cut shorter than she expected it to be, when Louis came in, saying that they needed to get started.

Eleanor and Louis had stayed up late the night before discussing what kinds of photos Harry should do for her celebration photo shoot, and one was a beach photo shoot. With Kendall. Which Harry found a little odd, but when she saw Eleanor’s expression at the two of them together, she quickly gave in. 

The thing that made Harry sad was that Niall and Zayn weren’t there with her. They celebrated all of their milestones together. Niall and Zayn had sent her a giant fruit basket in congratulations, which arrived just before Harry and Anne had breakfast. Harry had enjoyed a few of the selections, her heart full with how well her best friends knew her. 

Lottie had done both Kendall and Harry’s make-up and hair, with Félicité’s help, and Harry had never felt so glamourous in her entire life. 

The entire thing was fun, though. She didn’t want to take any of it too seriously. Playing on the beach with Louis’ siblings and having fun with Kendall, were all involved in the shoot. Louis had got a photographer at the last minute, a lovely woman named Beth, who said she’d be able to edit a couple of photos that evening and send them to Harry so she could post them on her Instagram account. The entire thing was a bit overwhelming, but incredibly exciting, too.

That afternoon, between takes, Harry slips into her and Louis’ bathroom. She has a quick shower to wash all of the sand off and to get prepared for the next round of photos. Eleanor had an idea to do a hotel shoot – like a sleep over. Harry only agreed if Lottie and Félicité could be in it with her, and with Jay’s permission, they were allowed. 

Louis pushes open the bathroom door as Harry is rinsing off and she steps into the shower with her. 

“I feel like I haven’t been able to touch you in _days_ ,” Louis says as she crowds Harry against the wall.

“Me too,” Harry agrees. She drapes her arms over Louis’ shoulders and lets out a happy sigh when their lips finally touch. 

When Louis had finally got to bed the night before, Harry was fast asleep, so sex wasn’t going to happen, despite being so turned on earlier in the day. _Now_ though was different. Now, Harry’s body is singing as Louis runs her hands down her sides, cupping her arse in both hands, squeezing the cheeks _just so_.

“I want you to do something for me,” Louis says, her breath hot on Harry’s neck. 

“Anything,” Harry agrees. 

Louis’ wicked grin has Harry’s clit throbbing between her legs. She lowers herself to her knees and noses at Harry’s pubic mound, pressing feather light kisses on her skin. Harry lets out a breathy sigh, spreading her legs so Louis can get in closer. Her breath hitches when Louis’ tongue flicks out and runs ever so slightly over her clit. 

Her heavy breathing fills the bathroom as Louis sucks on her clit. Harry grips at the slick tiles, trying to anchor herself to something lest she fall over. Louis presses impossibly close, eating Harry out with a fervour that has Harry even more aroused than before. She can’t help but rock her hips down, desperate for _more_.

When Louis’ finger slips passed the tight ring of muscle into her arse, Harry bites back what she knows would be a _loud_ moan as her orgasm hits her with force. Harry rides through the waves with Louis’ finger still inside of her, moving in a familiar stretching motion. Harry leans heavily back against the slick tiles and tries to get her breathing back under control.

Louis seems to have other ideas, though, if the way she’s looking at Harry is anything to go by. Harry bites her lip, meeting Louis’ lust filled gaze with one of her own. She pushes down into Louis’ hand, her mouth falling open in a silent gasp as Louis removes her finger. 

“Come here,” Louis says softly. She shuts off the water and opens the door for them to step out of the shower. “Lean over the counter and spread your legs.”

Harry immediately complies, leaning over the counter. She’s face to face with her reflection in the big mirror that is on the wall. Her skin is flushed a gorgeous pink, from the shower or her own arousal, she can’t exactly tell. Louis disappears for a moment, leaving Harry shivering in anticipation. Her clit throbs between her legs, eager for another round. 

“Stay silent,” Louis says. “We’ve got a house full of people who can hear _every_ little noise you make. Understood?”

Wordlessly, Harry nods. She keeps her gaze on Louis’ via their reflections in the mirror as Louis opens a small bottle of lubricant. She coats the tip of her finger and nudges it into Harry once more. Harry’s eyes close and her mouth opens in a noiseless moan. 

“Open your eyes,” Louis command, voice low. “I want you to watch yourself.”

Tongue darting out of her mouth to lick her lips, Harry nods and opens her eyes. She catches Louis’ expression and lets out a low breath, struggling to keep her composure. 

“That’s my girl,” Louis says. She opens the lubricant again, doing something behind Harry’s back that she can’t see. “I want a piece of me with you during this shoot,” she begins. “I want you to be able to _feel_ me inside of you with every movement you make. Do you want that, Harry?”

Harry nods. “Yes,” she breathes. Her nipples are ridiculously hard, straining against her breasts. She can see every ridge of them in the reflection from the mirror. She’s so turned on that it _hurts_. 

“Good,” Louis says. “You haven’t worn this in a while, so I think you deserve a treat, princess.”

Harry catches Louis’ devilish grin just as her plug presses inside of her. She gasps, eyes fluttering against the pressure.

“Eyes open.”

Harry snaps her eyes open, watching their reflections greedily. She wriggles her bum against Louis’s warm hand as the princess plug slides into place. She sighs again, her entire body trembling with want. Louis leans around her to wash her hands quickly. She rests her hands on Harry’s hips from behind her and squeezes the flesh softly. 

“How do you feel?” Louis asks, dipping her head to press kisses along Harry’s bare shoulder.

“ _Amazing_ ,” Harry replies. “Every single time I look at these photos, I’m going to get _so wet_ , Lou.”

“That’s the plan, love,” Louis replies. “I want every single time you look at any of the photos from today to _know_ that you’re wearing this princess plug.” She taps the jewelled end and Harry gasps, her hips rocking both into and away from the touch. “And the best part? _No one_ will know that you’re wearing it except me.”

Louis’ hands slide further down Harry’s hips, moving towards Harry’s pussy but they stop short. She presses fingers down on both of Harry’s tattoos and Harry moans low in her throat.

“These will need to be kept covered, too, okay?”

Harry nods in agreement. “Maybe we should stay at the hotel after the shoot is finished?” she suggests, biting down on her bottom lip, giving Louis an innocent look. “Because I want to _scream_ for you tonight.”

Louis gives her a wicked grin. “I might take you up on that, princess. Because I plan on shagging you until you can’t walk tomorrow.”

Harry’s grin matches Louis’ own and she finally lets go of the counter to turn in Louis’ embrace. She lifts one leg and hooks it around Louis’ middle, keeping her balance on one foot, mindful of the counter behind her. 

“I want to ride you until the sun starts to rise in the sky,” Harry says softly, purposefully rocking her hips forwards. She can feel her clit throbbing between her legs, absolutely aching for release. Her pussy rubs against the bottom of Louis’ shirt and she closes her eyes at the contact. She dips her head and kisses down Louis’ jaw. “Pussy or arse, it’s your choice. And I want you to tie me up, bend me over and fuck me raw.” She rocks her hips forwards again and Louis grips tightly at the flesh, fingers digging in _just_ so. The marks will be long gone before Harry exits the house, but she’ll know they were once there. “I _love_ having our families here, but I need to feel you inside of me a _lot_ more than I have been these last few days.”

Louis’ breath hitches as Harry scrapes her teeth over the pulse point in her neck. 

“And I want to just eat you out for however long I want without interruption,” Harry continues, lowering her leg so she’s standing with both feet on the floor. “I miss the taste of your pussy.”

Louis growls, low in her throat. “You, my love, are an absolute tease.”

Harry gives her a beaming smile. “I leaned from the best.”

She dips her head and kisses Louis hotly, pressing her naked body against Louis’ completely clothed one. She moans when Louis presses her against the counter, kissing her with all she’s worth. Harry moans into Louis’ mouth, hooking her leg around Louis’ middle once again.

“Touch me, please,” she begs. Louis is quick to comply, her hand slipping between their bodies. She roughly brushes over Harry’s clit and Harry bucks down into the touch. “Yes, rough, please!”

“I don’t want to hurt you,” Louis whispers. “You’re going to be photographed a lot and I don’t want you to be uncomfortable.”

“Just focus on my clit then,” Harry replies. “I need this, Lou, please.”

“Alright,” Louis agrees. “Alright.” 

She’s rougher than she’s probably comfortable with but Harry loves it. She grips onto the counter behind her, fingers digging in tightly. She sucks in a sharp breath and holds it, trying not to moan out loud. 

“Breathe, princess,” Louis says and Harry immediately exhales. She grips onto Louis’ shoulders as Louis roughly fingers her. It’s absolutely amazing, Harry thinks. She’s excited to be able to feel this later, to know that every time her knickers move against her body, she’s going to feel Louis inside of her. _This_ is exactly what she wanted.

Her breathing grows heavier as she nears her orgasm. Louis keeps up the pace, switching angles every now and then. Harry rocks down into Louis’ hand, her body thrumming with anticipation. 

“Fuck!” she exclaims as Louis hits her clit _just right_. She whimpers as Louis applies even more pressure. Her orgasm hits her with force and she trembles in Louis’ arms, her legs growing weak. She shakes all over as she rides through wave after wave of pleasure. 

“God, princess, you look _perfect_ ,” Louis says. She dips her head and kisses down Harry’s chest, her lips closing around Harry’s hard nipples. 

Harry sighs and closes her eyes, letting Louis kiss and mouth everywhere she wants to. Her body tingles happily, her clit and pussy aching from her orgasm. She feels sticky between her legs and she never wants the feeling to go away. 

Louis kneels between Harry’s legs and slowly licks her clean. Harry moans softly, twitching with oversensitivity. She bites her lip and spreads her legs further, wanting more. Louis makes a _tsk_ sound and stands up, leaning in close to kiss Harry. Harry can taste herself in Louis’ mouth and she greedily sucks on Louis’ tongue. She feels absolutely _amazing_ right now.

Louis’ hands roam over Harry’s body, making goosebumps appear along her skin. She slides her hand between Harry’s legs and pushes against the plug nestled inside of her arse. Harry moans and drops her head onto Louis’ shoulder.

“Maybe we should skip the photo shoot and just have sex all afternoon.”

Louis chuckles. “Later, my love,” she says, her voice low and soft in Harry’s ear. “I promise I will spend the _entire_ night making love to you, if you want.”

“Yay,” Harry says. She slumps against Louis, absolutely wrecked. She doesn’t know how she’s going to survive the rest of the afternoon not being able to touch Louis just how she wants to.

“Clean yourself up,” Louis says. “You need to get ready for your second shoot and I need to go orgasm.”

Harry pouts. Full on pouts. “ _I_ want to give you orgasms, though.”

“Then hurry up,” Louis says as she opens the bathroom door. “Because I’m starting without you. I’m going to _explode_ if I don’t come in the next five minutes.”

Harry hastily grabs a flannelette to clean up before she’s hurrying back into the bedroom to see Louis completely naked, and spread out like Harry’s favourite dessert. She licks her lips and climbs onto the bed next to Louis, who has two fingers buried inside of herself and her head thrown back.

“Touch me, princess.”

Harry doesn’t need to be asked twice. She licks her fingers to slick them up and she joins Louis’ hand between her legs. Louis feels impossibly warm and Harry just wants to get her mouth on her _desperately_. She settles for leaning over and kissing her hotly. She drinks in Louis’ little noises as she fingers Louis. She crooks her fingers _just so_ inside of Louis and grins when Louis clings to her as she orgasms. Harry works her through the aftershocks, enjoying the way Louis’ body twitches beneath her. She lowers her head, kissing her way down Louis’ neck, sucking on her nipples and stops at her favourite tattoo. Her teeth scrape over the black ink, leaving red streaks in her wake. She presses a lingering kiss to the dagger before sliding her fingers out of Louis. She locks her gaze with Louis’ as she lifts her hand to her lips and sucks her fingers clean. 

A loud bang on the door startles Harry and Lottie’s voice calls out.

“I’ll be out in a minute!” Harry calls back loudly. She turns to Louis, who is a perfect picture, spread out on the bed like this. “You have no idea how hard it is to tear myself away from you right now.” 

“Believe me, angel, I do,” Louis pants, her breathing still erratic. “Get dressed, I put some clothes out for you.”

Harry kisses Louis quickly on the lips before sliding off the bed and skipping over to where Louis has laid out the cutest silk pyjamas that Harry has ever seen. 

“ _Someone_ went to Victoria’s Secret without me!” Harry says as she picks up the matching shorts to go with the top. They’re a gorgeous pink, and Harry automatically loves it. She pulls on the knickers first, then the shorts, leaving the top until last. She keeps it in her hand as she wanders back towards the bed. 

Louis sits up as Harry approaches, raising an eyebrow at her.

“Maybe I should just be photographed like this?” she says, holding out the top. She drops it onto the bed. “ _Just_ like this?”

“Do you _want_ millions of people on the internet to see you naked?”

The hesitation doesn’t seem to surprise Louis. She shifts until she’s on the edge of the bed, wrapping her naked legs around Harry’s body. 

“I’ll tell you what,” Louis begins, her hands starting at Harry’s hips and sliding upwards until her thumbs are rubbing _ever so slightly_ against Harry’s nipples. “I’ll buy a Polaroid camera and we can do a naked photo shoot of you, if you like? You can prance around in your knickers or _nothing_ at all and they’ll be just for us.”

Harry nods. She tilts her head as Louis mouths at her neck. 

“Maybe I’ll get you to spread your legs and finger yourself for the camera, too?” she suggests, her breath damp on Harry’s skin. “And when we get home, you can use your favourite big dildo and show me how full you like your pussy to be stuffed?”

Harry lets out a breathy moan. “ _Yes_ ,” she whimpers, her mind racing with the images Louis is conjuring for her.

The bang on the door startles them both this time. “Hurry up or we’re going to be late!” Lottie says loudly through the door.

“Coming!” Harry calls out. 

Louis picks up the top. “Arms up,” she instructs. Harry lifts her arms and lets Louis dress her. She captures Harry’s wrists in her hands and holds them behind her. Harry doesn’t even struggle against Louis’ hold, but rather leans into it. “Go do your photo shoot, princess,” she says lowly, “and try not to ruin those knickers. I’ve got plans for you tonight.” Louis gives her one last, heated kiss before letting go completely

Harry’s entire body tingles at the prospect.

~*~

The photos turn out _gorgeous_. The photo shoot itself was so much fun, and every time that Harry sat down on one of the beds, she felt her princess plug inside of her. She felt so naughty wearing it. She loves that feeling.

That night, Beth had emailed Harry three photos from the shoot to upload to her Instagram account. The first one was beautiful – framed so perfectly that Harry hesitated about uploading it to the internet. She did, though, all of that hard work needed to be seen. And she tagged everyone in the photo, including Beth’s Instagram account, too. 

Because Kendall was in the photo, it got significantly more likes and comments than Harry’s photos usually did. But she didn’t pay attention to that. The only comment she cared about were the ones from her friends and family. 

Gemma’s ‘ _five million people follow you? Do they know that you knit and are a giant nerd_?’ made Harry smile so much. She loves the sisterly teasing that Gemma doles out. Niall and Zayn had also commented on the photo, expressing their opinions on the photo and Harry’s follower count.

Niall texted her with ‘ _I need you to take a photo of Eleanor and Kendall snogging and send it to me… It’s for science_ ’ which Harry had laughed at, but complied the first moment she was able to.

Eleanor and Kendall had to leave to get back to their respective jobs. Harry and Louis had driven them to the airport so they could say their goodbyes and Kendall surprised Harry by giving her a huge hug. 

“You’re awesome,” Kendall had said in Harry’s ear. “Keep in touch!”

“You too.”

Even Eleanor had given Harry a hug, which startled her more than she wanted to admit. She knew their relationship wasn’t the best, but she knew they were both trying. Which was the main thing. And seeing Eleanor so happy with Kendall definitely helped things, too.

Now, though, Harry is relaxing on the beach, writing in her journal, documenting everything that has happened over the last few days. Louis is next to her, doing the exact same, and Harry feels closer to her than ever. She loves that Louis keeps a diary like she does. It was something she had been a little surprised by it at first, when they first got together, but Louis told her that she had always kept a journal growing up, and never really got out of the habit. 

The sun is setting in the sky, and the smell of food being cooked by her dad and Dan is wafting over to her. Harry’s stomach grumbles and she finishes her paragraph before she’s closing her book and tucking it into Louis’ bag. She gets up to see how far off the barbecue is from being finished. 

“Hey, Dad,” Harry says as she approaches Robin and Dan. “I’m hungry.”

Robin laughs. “Food will be ready in twenty minutes,” he says. “Mum and Jay are inside getting some salads ready if you want to eat something now.”

“Thanks!” she kisses his cheek and skips off into the house. 

Anne and Jay are in the kitchen like Robin said they would be. They’ve got glasses of wine in their hands and Harry’s face lights up. She immediately grabs herself a glass and pours some of the delicious red wine for herself. 

“Mum, I’m hungry,” Harry says after she’s had a sip of her drink. “Dad said you were making salads.”

“Don’t eat too much,” Anne says. “There has to be enough for everyone.”

Harry nods, setting her glass down as she opens the fridge and pulls out a potato salad. She scoops one spoonful for herself onto a small plate and leans against the counter to eat it.

“Harry,” Lottie says, appearing out of nowhere. “Come look at this.”

Harry picks up her wine in her free hand and follows Lottie into the living room. She sits down next to her on the sofa.

“My YouTube video from the photo shoot has over one million views!” 

“Holy crap,” Harry says as Lottie loads up the video. 

“That’s not all,” Lottie starts, “I’ve got a million Instagram followers now and over six hundred thousand YouTube subscribers.”

“That’s amazing!” Harry exclaims. 

“It’s all because Kendall was in my stuff, though,” Lottie says.

“That may be _a_ reason for the increase, but your stuff is _geat_ , Lottie,” Harry insists. “But people stay following you because of _you_ , not because of Kendall or someone else.”

Lottie gives Harry a small smile. “Thanks,” she says. “It’s a bit overwhelming, you know?”

Harry nods. “Yeah, I do,” she says. “But this will help you build your brand and your portfolio, won’t it? Your uni will be _thrilled_ at your content!”

Lottie beams. “Yeah. Yeah, they will!”

Harry presses her shoulder into Lottie’s. “I’m so proud of you. Your make-up was amazing the other day. Kendall couldn’t shut up about it.”

“I’m so glad she liked it sober, too,” Lottie says. “I was a bit worried that she was just drunk and wouldn’t like it when she woke up.”

“Understandable,” Harry begins, “but I’m glad your fears were unfounded.”

“Me too,” Lottie says. “Thank you again for believing in me.”

Harry slings her arm around Lottie’s shoulders. “Of course! That’s what sisters are for!”

“I can’t wait to show Niall, too,” Lottie says. “She was my first subscriber.”

“Niall’s awesome like that,” Harry comments. “She’ll be proud of you, too. And she’s here tomorrow, so you’ll be able to tell her all of this in person!”

Lottie smiles at her and tucks her phone away just as Robin calls from outside that their food is ready.

“Good! I’m starving,” Harry says. She gets up and pours herself another glass of wine, including one for Louis. 

“Thanks, love,” Louis says, accepting the glass from Harry. They get their food and sit together at one of the tables. Harry eats her food happily, thinking about how absolutely wonderful and odd this part of her holiday has been so far. She can’t wait to see what happens next.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi again. If you've got this far, I hope you enjoyed this part. ♥
> 
>  
> 
> rebloggable post on my [tumblr](http://star55.tumblr.com)


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Again, tags have been updated to reflect the upcoming chapter.
> 
>  _Massive_ thank yous to Jay and Leah for the cheerleading, and to Jada for the beta read. It is very much appreciated. ♥
> 
> !! Please note - there are characters that share names with real life people, and that is where the resemblance stops. I do not, in any way, shape, or form, think that these people are anything like that in real life. Please see the end notes for spoiler related comments.
> 
>  
> 
> Also, please do not share this with anyone in any of the band's family, or to their friends, or anyone in their lives, etc. Thank you.

~*~  
_Niall_

The noise is what reaches them first. Niall can tell that it’s Louis before she even _sees_ her, but when she and Zayn round the corner, there is every single Tomlinson family member that Niall has ever met before all making a ridiculous amount of noise, and all wearing the happiest of expressions. Niall chances a glance at Zayn, who is busy tugging down the crop top she’s wearing. It looks _sexy_. Niall had appreciated her choice of clothing already, but she thinks that she’s probably going to have to appreciate it a _lot_ more when she and Zayn are alone.

“Race you?” Niall says, letting go of Zayn’s hand. She grips her beach towel tighter and sprints the rest of the way to where the rest of their friends are, unable to stop grinning. 

Predictably, Zayn walks over at a leisurely pace. Niall is glad that she’s out here, on this private beach, with all of them. She knows that crowds can get a bit much for Zayn, especially big crowds, so she’s proud that Zayn is out here with them. 

Niall sets her towel down, spreading it out over the sand, close enough to some of Louis’ family members to talk to them, but far enough away that it gives her and Zayn some semblance of privacy. Zayn sets her towel down next to Niall’s and flops back, covering her face with her arms, her crop top riding up even more, revealing her blue bikini top. 

“Alright?” she asks and Zayn nods.

“Yeah.”

Niall leans over and kisses Zayn soundly on the lips, despite her arms being slightly in the way. She grins when she feels Zayn’s mouth curving into a smile. 

“I’m gonna go jump in the water,” Niall starts, “go talk to Liam or Sophia if you get lonely.”

“Yeah, I will.”

She kisses Zayn again before standing up, whipping off her shirt and shorts and racing out into the water where Harry and Louis’ twin sisters are playing. She splashes them as she approaches, causing the twins to squeal. 

“Niall!” Phoebe or Daisy exclaims. She can’t really tell them apart yet. 

“Phoebe and I were hoping that you’d come play with us,” Daisy says. She’s the one wearing the green bathing suit. Right. Niall has got that down. She’ll be able to tell them apart now. That’s good. 

“Where’s the beach ball?” Niall asks. “I swear it was out here earlier.”

“Louis just took it inside to get it pumped up,” Harry replies. “She’ll be back in a minute.”

“Alright,” Niall says, “let’s wrestle then?”

Both Daisy and Phoebe’s faces light up, and there’s a moment where Niall is sure that she’s going to be pushed under water when Phoebe climbs up on her back, but she manages to stay steady on her feet. Once Phoebe is sitting on Niall’s shoulders, Niall holds her legs and surges forwards, letting the sisters battle it out.

There’s a look of pure concentration on Harry’s face as she keeps a hold of Daisy’s legs. Niall can’t help but reach out and poke Harry in the tit, causing Harry and Daisy to topple over into the water. There’s a loud splash as they fall and both Phoebe and Niall cheer loudly. Phoebe slides down from Niall’s shoulders, landing in the water with ease.

“That’s cheating!” Harry exclaims as she bursts through the water, loose strands of her hair plastered to her face. “You poked my boob!”

Niall laughs. “I didn’t hear any rules saying I couldn’t.”

Harry pokes her tongue out at Niall and immediately seems to regret it from the look of disgust on her face. Niall laughs harder.

“Let’s go again!” Daisy exclaims, jumping up and down and clapping her hands together. 

“Oi, oi!” 

Niall glances over in time to see a large beach ball hurtling towards her face. She catches it and throws it up in the air, laughing as it lands with a small _splat_ on the water. Daisy and Phoebe immediately scramble after it. 

“Try not to get my face next time, Lou,” Niall teases.

“Next time don’t poke my fiancée’s tits,” Louis retorts with a grin. She gets closer to Niall and all but tackles her into the water, her laughter contagious. 

Niall laughs, sea water flooding her mouth. She breaks through the surface and immediately spits it out, shuddering at the gross taste. “Alright,” she says, shaking out her hair. She launches herself at Louis, their bodies colliding and sending them both under the water. Louis’ laughter cuts off as they’re submerged and Niall’s sure that she gets a mouthful of water, too. 

They play around together for a good couple of hours, the sun beating down on their backs, drying out the water where it beads on their skin. Niall’s feet have definitely pruned. She loves it. It’s amazing being on this private beach, their friends and families surrounding them. Louis really outdid herself with this holiday, she thinks.

After another round of tag with Louis’ sisters, Lottie and Félicité included, Niall gets out of the water and makes her way to where her beach towel sits. She wraps herself in it and looks around for Zayn. She picks up a bottle of water and downs the entire thing before she sees Zayn sitting with Liam and Willow. 

Niall’s stomach swoops pleasantly seeing Zayn holding Willow close. She’s glad that Zayn is talking to someone, too. She gets a little worried sometimes about how reclusive Zayn can be. But then there’s moments like this that make Niall think that she has absolutely nothing to worry about. She’s _Zayn_. She lets people in that she really likes and trusts, and it makes Niall happy that she feels comfortable with Liam.

A movement catches her eye as Liam reaches up to brush something off Zayn’s cheek and Zayn ducks her head, smiling. Niall blinks, cocking her head to the side as she watches the scene unfold in front of her. 

“You alright?” 

Niall looks over to see Louis’ worried expression. 

“Yeah… I… yeah.” She nods decisively. 

“You sure?” Louis asks. She picks up a bottle of water for herself, cracking the lid and talking a long pull. 

“Liam touched Zayn’s face is all.”

Louis glances over to where Liam and Zayn are sitting closely together. Were they sitting that closely before? She bites her lip, worrying it with her teeth. It’s not something that she’s ever had to worry about before. People hit on Zayn all of the time. Unfortunately, it was a part of who she was - both utterly gorgeous, coupled with being a celebrity’s kid. It’s never bothered Niall before because Zayn has never shown interest in anyone but Niall. They were each other’s lobsters.

“It takes a while but Liam can be really tactile when she’s close to someone. It took her close to a year to even give me a cuddle,” Louis says. “And you know me, I’m a cuddler.”

Niall nods. Uneasiness curls in her belly and she picks up another bottle of water, fiddling with the lid. “You don’t think…?” she trails off, unsure if she even wants to say that thought out loud. 

“I don’t think that Liam would cheat on Sophia,” Louis says softly, clearly picking up on Niall’s unspoken question. “I’d like to think the same of Zayn, especially since I know how head over heels she is for you. But if you’re worried, I suggest you talk to her.”

Niall nods, tearing her gaze away from where Zayn’s head is thrown back in laughter and there are visible crinkles of happiness next to Liam’s eyes. “Yeah.”

Louis’ hand reaches out and grasps Niall’s own. “I’m here if you need me, yeah?”

“Yeah,” Niall agrees. She unscrews the bottle’s lid and takes a long sip. “Thanks.”

“Any time.”

Niall runs her hand through her hair and makes her way over to Liam, Zayn, and Willow. 

“Hey, babes,” Zayn says, her face lighting up as she sees Niall. 

“Hey,” Niall says, sitting down next to Zayn. She reaches out and lets Willow hold her index finger. “Were you two flirting?”

 _Shit_. She didn’t mean to say that.

“What?” Zayn asks, tilting her head, a confused expression on her face.

“Just now, before I came over here. Were you two flirting?”

Willow is carefully removed from Zayn’s hold as Liam takes her back, kissing the top of her baby soft head. 

“I wasn’t flirting,” Liam says seriously. “I don’t know what it looked like to you, but I absolutely wasn’t flirting.”

Niall turns her gaze to Zayn. 

“I wasn’t flirting, either,” Zayn says. There’s a fire in her eyes that Niall has never seen before. “Babes, I wasn’t flirting.”

“Alright, I believe you.” The uneasiness doesn’t leave Niall’s stomach even as Liam gets up and leaves them sitting under the large beach umbrella. 

“Niall,” Zayn begins, her hand moving to rest on Niall’s thigh. “I wasn’t flirting. I was asking Liam how she proposed.”

“Oh,” Niall says. “I’m sorry that I thought you were flirting.”

“Niall,” Zayn continues, her voice laced with a softness that Niall has only ever heard when they’ve been alone in bed. “I was asking because I wanted ideas.”

Niall’s whole world stops still. She blinks three times, confusion clouding her brain for a good thirty seconds before the pieces connect. 

“What?” she breathes, her pulse suddenly racing.

“Yeah.”

“ _Zayn_.”

“ _Yeah_.”

Niall laughs, throwing her arms around Zayn in a hug that propels both of them back. She sinks into Zayn’s embrace and kisses her soundly on the lips.

“You’re going to propose?”

Zayn bites her lip. This coy look is good on her, Niall thinks. “Yeah. I’ve wanted to for a while, but it’s never been the right time.”

“I love you. A lot.”

Zayn reaches up and tucks Niall’s hair behind her ear. “I love you too. Now kiss me.”

Niall grins and gladly complies. Their lips slide together easily, familiarly. Niall closes her eyes and loses herself in the way Zayn’s lips move under hers, so responsive and wonderful. Her hand curls in the back of Niall’s hair, keeping her close. She feels the doubt evaporate from her mind, replaced with nothing but love for her girlfriend. 

“This is yes, by the way,” Niall mumbles against Zayn’s lips. “Just in case you were wondering.”

The way Zayn cups her face so gently makes Niall’s heart hurt a little. “I wasn’t wondering. I _knew_.”

Niall crashes her lips to Zayn’s again, a little hotter and needier than before. 

“Get a room!” 

Niall pulls back to see Louis grinning at her, Willow in her arms and Liam standing next to her. She shakes her head and gets up, offering her hand out to Zayn.

“Good idea, Tommo!” 

Louis’ laughter follows them as Niall leads Zayn back to their room.

~*~

Sex as an engaged couple is pretty great, Niall thinks. She tries to catch her breath, Zayn curled around her, sweat drying on both of their bodies.

She should call her mum. 

“I think you’re sunburned,” Zayn mumbles sleepily, pressing her lips to Niall’s bare shoulder. 

“Probably,” Niall replies. She glances over at Zayn and kisses her soundly on the lips. “I’m gonna go shower. You get some sleep.”

“Okay.”

Zayn yawns and burrows further into the blankets, making Niall smile. She kisses the top of Zayn’s head, then makes her way to the bathroom. The hot water prickles her skin and Niall figures that Zayn is right, she is sunburned. She’s going to regret that tomorrow. 

After her shower, Niall changes into a loose shirt and denim shorts. She leaves Zayn asleep and grabs her phone, dialling her mum as she exits the room, nerves filling her stomach. 

It’s not just that Niall isn’t close to her family, it’s that they’ve never really _understood_ her. And they didn’t _want_ to understand her, either. They’ve refused to get to know her several times, in fact. Even when she did share something about herself, they never understood it. They don’t understand _anything_ about her. Not the fact that she’s bisexual. Not the fact that she’s in a long-term relationship with another girl. Not even the fact that Niall doesn’t want to go into the ‘family business’, despite having a large social media following of her own, and is therefore some kind of social media influencer. She doesn’t mind all of that, it comes with being a child of a celebrity, and she knows that. And Zayn knows that. Heck, even Harry knows that. It’s what their entire secondary schooling life was - being surrounded by other kids of celebrities. Niall understands all of that, and she accepts it. It’s just she doesn’t think that her parents really understand why she _doesn’t_ want to do the things they do. That she wants to do her own things. In her own way. And even if she hasn’t figured it all out yet, or even figured out what she wants to do with her life, she’s excited to explore her options and find something that’s good for _her_.

And it definitely beats going down the path that some of her classmates did - getting heavily into drugs and alcohol as a coping mechanism for dealing with their parents’ fame. 

Niall is thankful that she had to change schools when she did because she was already headed down that path when she was thirteen years old. Crying out for her parents’ attention, for attention of _any_ kind, and doing the stupid things she did. But meeting Zayn changed all of that. 

Zayn was exactly what Niall needed at that point in her life - to be someone that could show her that life didn’t have to be all sex and drugs and desperate pleas for her parents’ approval and attention. 

And what started out between them as just friendship developed into more, which made Niall feel like the luckiest girl in the world. She had this amazing person who treated her like a human – as an individual and not a by-product of her parents’ fame and fortune. Zayn made Niall feel like she was _worthy_. And even though Niall needed therapy after everything that had happened at her previous school, she was able to get through it because of Zayn. And Harry, too, of course. Their friendship was the best thing that had ever happened to Niall.

And of course, her parents never understood _any_ of it. They were incredibly selfish people. Something that Niall only realised as she got older. They always made things about them, and it often left Niall dreading going home, or even being around them. But she’s always kept them in her life because that’s what you’re meant to do with family, right? That’s what she’s always told herself, at least. Even though it never failed to make her feel uncomfortable, she figured that it’s what she owed them for being their daughter.

Niall is nervous to tell her parents that she’s engaged. Every time that she’s told them something important about her life, they’ve turned it around to be all about them. And she doesn’t want that for this. She’s always kept the peace, did everything that she was told to do, even if she didn’t want to do it because they’re her _parents_. But the idea of sharing this with them sits heavily in her stomach.

The ringing finally stops and she gets her mum’s voicemail, and Niall feels guilty for feeling so relieved that no one answered. She contemplates leaving a message but in the end, decides not to. She hangs up and shoots her mum a text saying that she has news to share. Maybe her mum won’t be indifferent with her over this. There’s no way she’s telling her dad, of course. He already wants to cut Niall off, and this would just give him more reason to.

With a sigh, Niall turns around and heads down the corridor, hoping to find a friendly face. She’s flooded with relief when she sees Harry before she sees anyone else.

“Hey!” Harry says, her face lighting up when she sees Niall. “Where’s Zayn?”

“Sleeping,” Niall replies. She squashes herself into the arm chair that Harry is sitting in and she immediately curls into her best friend’s side. 

The house that Louis rented is like a _mansion_. It’s absolutely huge. It has to be, of course, considering how many family members that Louis has, and how many people are staying there. To find Harry and have this quiet moment with her is a little rare. So she’s thankful that they’re alone.

“So I’m getting married.”

Harry’s hand stills in Niall’s slightly damp hair. “Oh my god! That’s wonderful! Congratulations!”

Niall laughs as Harry pulls her close, pressing kisses all over the top of Niall’s head. She turns her head and kisses Harry’s cheek. “Zayn didn’t really _propose_ propose, but we’re engaged anyway. No ring, either, but I don’t care about that stuff.”

“I’m so happy for you,” Harry says softly. She hiccups and Niall doesn’t even have to look at her to know that she’s crying. Wordlessly, Niall reaches for the tissues sitting on the coffee table and she passes the box to Harry. 

“Thank you,” Niall says. “For being so happy for me.”

“Of course,” Harry replies. “You’re both my best friends. Of course I’m happy for you.”

Niall nods and laces her fingers with Harry’s.

“You’re worried about telling your parents, aren’t you?”

That’s the thing with best friends – they know you better than anyone else.

“Yeah,” Niall says. She sighs and tips her head back to rest on Harry’s shoulder. “There’s only two reactions they’ll have. One will be they go and get shitfaced drunk, _or_ Dad finally disinherits me.”

“...They might be happy for you, Nialler.”

Niall snorts. “Dad’s been looking for an excuse to cut me off.”

Harry makes a wounded noise. Her arms tighten around Niall’s body. “If I could, I’d adopt you.”

Niall chokes out a laugh. “I’m older than you, Haz.”

“ _Hmph_!” Harry pouts. “It’s the thought that counts.”

They fall silent, Niall tracing over Harry’s unpolished fingernails. She thinks about all of the times that Harry has been there for her after her parents did something stupid. Like get black-out drunk at Niall’s birthday party. Or when they made her coming out all about them. Or having raging parties every single time Niall had exams. 

Really, it’s no wonder that she spent most of her teenage years between Harry and Zayn’s houses. It’s no wonder that she has no desire to let her parents know that she’s engaged to the love of her life. 

“I don’t want to tell them,” Niall whispers. 

Harry tightens her grip on Niall’s hand. “Tell me what you’re thinking.”

“They’re just going to make it about _them_ ,” Niall continues. She can feel the tears pricking behind her eyes but she refuses to let them fall. “And I don’t want that. My engagement is about Zayn and _me_ , not about them. I don’t want them to know.”

She looks at Harry, who is biting her bottom lip. As much as Harry has always been there for her, she still doesn’t understand what it’s like to have shitty parents. Anne and Robin are an amazing, stable couple, that did everything they could to make sure that Gemma and Harry had as close to a normal upbringing as they could. And it worked because the proof is in the pudding. Both Harry and Gemma are well-adjusted, fully functional women, and are both close with their parents.

Niall is a little jealous.

“If you don’t tell them, they might cause more of a scene,” Harry says after a few long moments of silence. “And knowing Bobby and Maura, it’ll be on the front page of some trashy tabloid.”

Harry’s right. Of course she is. Her parents will be _so hurt_ (only to the public, of course) that she didn’t tell them she’s engaged. And in their true style, they’ll make it all about them. And will undoubtedly smear Niall’s name as they do. She’s in a lose-lose situation.

Niall sighs and buries her face in Harry’s neck. 

However she decides to do this is going to bring about _some_ kind of reaction that Niall doesn’t want to deal with from her parents. She just has to choose which one she would rather deal with more.

“If Bobby cuts you off, Louis will adopt you,” Harry says easily, “she’s loaded. You’ll be fine.”

It’s the sincerity in that comment that has the tears coming.

~*~

“Achoo, me _down_!”

“No, you little rascal, stay still.” 

Niall bites back a laugh as she watches Louis struggle with a squirming Ernest, and a placid Doris, in her arms. 

“Want a hand?”

Louis looks up and nods, relief flooding her expression. “Can you take Doris?”

“Sure.” Niall reaches out for the little girl, cuddling her close. She rests her head sleepily on Niall’s shoulder, sucking her thumb into her mouth. 

“Ernie, _stop that_ ,” Louis says exasperatedly. 

“Achoo! No!” Ernest exclaims. He wriggles his hardest in Louis’ arms before Louis sets him down on the floor. 

Louis sighs and rubs a hand over her face. “I don’t know how Mum does it.”

“Years of practice?” Niall offers. Doris seems perfectly content in Niall’s arms, which she is thankful for. Having a squirming toddler to deal with isn’t her idea of fun.

“Probably,” Louis agrees.

“Can I ask you something?” Niall asks. 

“Of course,” Louis replies. She sits down on the carpet next to Ernest who has a toy train in his hands, and a look of complete concentration on his face. 

Niall lowers herself into an arm chair, making sure not to squash Doris, who seems to be falling asleep against her. “I don’t want this to… This is really hard.”

Louis looks over at her. “Nialler,” she begins softly, “just say whatever you want to. No judgements here, alright?”

Niall nods. “Would you be able to fly Zayn’s sisters out here? And maybe her mum?”

“Yeah, of course,” Louis replies without hesitation. “When for?”

“As soon as possible?”

“Alright,” Louis says. “Let me just grab my purse.” She gets up and disappears, only to return a moment later with her purse and laptop. “Have at it. I’ll take Doris and put her to bed. C’mon, Ernie, bedtime.” 

She carefully takes Doris, who is fast asleep, from Niall, and leaves the room again, Ernest toddling along behind her. Niall opens Louis’ laptop, smiling at the photo from Christmas that is her desktop wallpaper. 

She quickly pulls up flights from London to Barcelona and checks the prices and times. Her eyes widen at the prices, but she expected that for being last minute. She hesitates, her finger hovering over the mousepad.

“Niall,” Louis says softly, moving to sit on the floor next to her chair. “What’s going on?”

Niall sucks her lips into her mouth, biting down on them. She slides out of the arm chair and sits on the floor next to Louis, leaving the laptop open on the carpet between them. 

“Zayn and I want to get married here,” Niall begins. “While everyone is here. Why wait, right?”

“Is that why you want Zayn’s sisters and mum here?”

Niall nods. “It is.”

“And her dad?”

“He… he doesn’t agree with Zayn marrying a woman.”

“Oh.”

“Yeah.”

“And your parents?”

“Disowned me.”

“Are you fucking kidding me?” 

Whatever reaction from Louis Niall expected, it wasn’t _that_.

“Umm…”

“They disowned you? For marrying another girl?”

Niall blinks and nods. “Yeah. Dad’s been… _Bobby_ has been looking for a reason to cut me off for years now. And I handed him one on a silver platter.”

“ _Fuck_.”

Louis scoots closer and wraps her arms around Niall, holding her tight. Niall curls into Louis. She seems to be doing that a lot with people these days - letting them hold and comfort her. Not that she isn’t a tactile person herself, but this has been extra, even for her. 

“Whatever you need, Niall. Anything at all. It’s yours. Okay? Just name it and it's yours.”

Niall gives Louis a crooked smile. “Harry said you’d say that.”

“She’s a smart woman, that fiancée of mine.”

“Yeah, she is.”

“Have you spoken to Zayn’s family? Are they aware you’re booking them flights?”

“Yeah, we spoke just before. Trisha isn’t sure if she’ll be able to make it, but I’ll book her a seat anyway,” Niall replies. “Zayn’s family loves her. Even if her dad doesn’t agree with her getting married to me, he still loves her.”

“Book him a seat, too. Just do it, he might surprise you both.”

“Alright,” Niall agrees. She picks up the laptop again and changes the details of the bookings to include another seat. Louis flicks open her purse and passes Niall a black credit card before she can even ask for it. Niall gives Louis a grateful look and punches in Louis’ card details.

“Now message Trisha and tell her that Zayn’s dad has a seat, too.”

Niall nods and immediately messages Trisha the details. 

“Feel better?”

“A little,” Niall replies. “I just want Zayn’s family to be here for her on her wedding day.”

“I know it doesn’t count for much, but I consider you family,” Louis starts. “And I’m here for you, for _anything_ you want or need.”

“Thanks, Louis,” Niall says. 

“C’mon, let’s go for a walk.” Louis stands and offers her hand out to Niall. She laces their fingers together and leads Niall towards the beach. 

The sun is just beginning to set in the sky, giving the ocean a beautiful orange and pink colour. They stop and just watch the sun set over the sea, slowly darkening the world around them. 

Niall feels a bit lost. She knows that her parents are dramatic idiots, but it doesn’t stop the _hurt_. It didn’t stop her from crying when she finally got through to her mum to tell her that she was engaged, only for Maura to hang up on her. It didn’t stop the hurt when Bobby called her later to tell her how selfish she was, hurting her mum like that. And how he wanted nothing to do with her anymore. 

And it certainly didn’t stop the hurt when the internet had a field day over whatever bullshit her parents had spun with a trashy tabloid, bagging Niall out as much as they could. It’s barely been a day and the shit has already hit the fan. 

And it definitely didn’t stop the hurt when she went to buy tampons earlier and her card was declined. Which pissed her off, because that was her _own_ money. Not theirs. She may just have ten million Instagram and five million Twitter followers, but that’s how she earns her money, as odd as it is. When she gets back to England, she’ll have to sort out all new bank accounts so that her parents can’t touch what is rightfully hers. She expected this of them, of course, but somehow, it still hurts more than she thought it would.

As of now, Niall has nothing. Nothing except Zayn.

And maybe it is a bit desperate to get married as soon as possible, but Niall just wants something _stable_ and something to call her own that hasn’t been touched or tainted by her parents. 

Warm arms encircle Niall from behind, startling her out of her thoughts. 

She didn’t even notice Louis leaving and Zayn taking her place. 

“Thanks for getting my parents here,” Zayn says. “Mum called to say that Dad is coming, too.”

Niall nods, her voice failing her. 

“I’m your family now, Niall,” Zayn whispers. “And I’m going to do everything in my power to make sure that you’re never hurt like that again.”

Niall curls her fingers into Zayn’s arm and nods again. She closes her eyes as Zayn kisses the side of her neck and lets herself just be held.

~*~

Seeing Zayn’s face light up when her parents arrive at the house is both wonderful and heart-breaking for Niall. There is a flurry of Malik family members all hugging each other and speaking in fast Urdu that has Niall struggling to keep up.

It sends a pang through her to know that her own parents won’t be there, but she quickly tries to squash that down. She is happy that Zayn’s family are here. The wedding wouldn’t be the same without them. 

She leaves the room, letting Zayn catch up with her family. They haven’t really been apart for that long, but the Maliks are all close. 

Niall heads outside and sees Anne and Jay sitting under a big beach umbrella with Ernest and Doris playing in the sand. She smiles and makes her way over, shucking off her flip flops and digging her toes into the warm sand. 

“Is that Zayn’s parents in, then?” Anne asks, wordlessly passing Niall a sandwich and bottle of water. 

“Thanks,” Niall says, accepting them. “And yeah, it is. I thought I’d best leave them to catch up a bit.”

Anne nods and Jay gives Niall a gentle pat on the shoulder, squeezing softly. It’s both lovely and hurts a little to be around such wonderful mothers. Niall just wants to sit in their presence and enjoy their collective warmth. She eats her sandwich as she watches Doris and Ernest digging in the sand not even a metre away from them. She gets up to put her rubbish in the bin and as she sits back down, Doris notices her. 

“Help,” Doris says, waddling over to Niall. She hands Niall a plastic spade and Niall gets roped into helping build a little sandcastle for Doris. 

She can hear Anne and Jay talking about wedding details, and Niall tunes them out, assuming that they’re talking about their own daughters’ wedding, whenever that happens to be.

After a while of digging sand and putting it in buckets, Ernest makes his way over and watches them. He looks at Niall and grabs her hand, tugging her so she shuffles over enough to help him in the sand, too. Niall loses herself in building two small sandcastles for the twins to enjoy. Their laughter when she’s finished is contagious. 

“Let’s get a photo,” Niall says, pulling out her phone. She takes several photos of her work, and then several more of the twins clapping their hands as they stomp all over the sandcastles, sending clumps of sand spraying everywhere. She can’t help but laugh as Doris falls with purpose on top of her sandcastle, undoubtedly getting sand in her nappy. Niall does not envy Jay there whatsoever. 

Once the sandcastles have been smushed back into the ground, Doris takes it upon herself to sit in Niall’s lap, snuggling in close. Niall kisses the top of her red hair, resting her chin in the soft curls. Ernest joins them a moment later, wriggling until he’s squashed in next to his sister. 

Niall picks up her phone again and opens the front camera to take photos of them all. She pokes her tongue out and watches with glee when both kids do the same. She blows raspberries on each of their cheeks, enjoying their laughter. 

As if she’s tuned into the sounds of babies laughing, Harry appears out of nowhere, looking fresh-faced and completely ready to go for a swim. She plonks herself down on the sand and rummages around in the bag she brought with her.

“Want to help me take the twins for a swim?” Harry asks Niall. 

“Alright,” Niall agrees. 

She lets Jay change both of their nappies into ones they can wear in the water, and then pulls bathing suits onto both of their squirming bodies. 

“Thanks for this, girls,” Jay says once she’s finished dressing the twins and slathering them with sunscreen. 

“Any time,” Harry replies easily. “This will be fun.”

Niall gets up, swinging Doris onto her hip, adjusting Doris’ hat as she does. She follows Harry into the water. They stop at ankle height and Niall carefully lowers Doris down. It’s warm already, despite the fact that it’s only mid-morning. The water is refreshing on her bare skin.

Doris squeals and pats the water with her hands. Niall sits herself down on her knees, keeping Doris within her reach at all times. She can’t help but smile as Doris makes little splashes with her hands, squealing with excitement each time the water tickles her. 

Harry is about a metre away with Ernest, saying something that’s probably boring about aquatic life if the slow-tone of Harry’s voice is anything to go by.

“Look!” Niall exclaims, showing Doris a pretty shell that she found in the sand. Doris immediately tries to put it in her mouth. “Ooh, yucky.” Doris throws it back into the water. 

Niall pats the top of the water near Doris and Doris wiggles happily at the motion, putting her hand on top of Niall’s, likely to help Niall pat the water properly. 

“C’mon, let’s go out a bit further,” Niall says. She gets up and takes Doris’ hand, slowly leading her until Doris’ knees are covered by the water. Doris’ face goes wide and she lets out an almighty squeal that has both Harry and Ernest looking over at them. Niall just shrugs and squats down so that she’s within Doris’ reach. 

“Maybe we should walk out a bit further with them?” Harry suggests as she gets closer, Ernest settled on her hip.

“I’m a bit scared. They’re not my kids and I don’t want to accidentally drown one of them,” Niall replies. 

Harry grins. “Alright, we’ll stay here.” She folds herself down so that Ernest can stand next to his sister, patting the water like she’s doing. 

It’s simple and fun, Niall thinks, watching these toddlers exploring the ocean. It takes her mind off things that she’d rather not be thinking about. She’s felt sick since the phone calls with her parents, and it’s not just because she has her period, either. 

“God, what I’d give to be a kid again,” Niall says.

“I know, right? People do everything for you, take care of you, feed you, dress you… That’s the life,” Harry replies with an easy grin.

“Yeah, that’s the life,” Niall agrees. Doris picks up another shell and tries to put it in her mouth. Niall quickly intervenes. “Yucky,” she says, taking it from her, looking over her shoulder to throw it away.

She bursts out laughing when Ernest bends over and licks the water, his face one of horrified disgust as he realises that it tastes awful. She quickly stops Doris from doing the same, distracting her with tickles instead.

“C’mon, let’s see if Mummy has some lunch for you,” Harry says, scooping Ernest up into her arms. She kisses his blonde curls and he settles against Harry easily.

Niall gets up out of the water just as Doris falls on her bottom, the water lapping up around her chest. She laughs and pats the water a little harder. “Oopsie daisy,” Niall says, picking Doris up. Doris leans over Niall’s arm, trying to reach the water again. 

Harry walks ahead of them, her floppy sun-hat casting a big shadow over Ernest. Niall shakes her head and adjusts her snapback. Doris curls her hand into Niall’s arm as they walk and she lets out a happy sound when Jay comes back into her line of sight. 

“Did you have fun?” Jay asks, accepting Doris back from Niall.

“I think so,” Niall replies for Doris. “Ernie tried to eat the water, so he probably had less fun.”

Harry laughs as she dries Ernest off. “He won’t do that again in a hurry.”

Niall grabs a towel and wraps it around her lower half before sitting back down, sand sticking to the wet skin of her legs. 

“Where’s Louis?” Niall asks, looking around. Lottie and Félicité took Daisy and Phoebe shopping, but Niall could swear that she heard Louis at breakfast this morning.

“She’s around somewhere,” Jay says and Niall nods. “Have you settled on someone to marry you and Zayn then?”

Niall nods. “Yeah, Liam’s going to do it,” she replies. “She’s proper excited about it, too.”

“She would be,” Jay says as she settles Doris on her knee to give her some lunch. 

Niall grabs another sandwich from the cooler box near Anne’s chair and sits next to her. Anne’s hand finds its way into Niall’s short hair, stroking gently, making Niall feel incredibly sleepy. She watches as Harry settles Ernest on her knee to give him some lunch, thinking that Harry is going to be an incredible mother one day. That’s her last thought as she closes her eyes and falls asleep against Anne’s legs.

~*~

Everything is a buzz of constant noise. Niall’s head hurts a little.

Noise she’s used to. She doesn’t mind being in the thick of things, right in there making as much noise as the rest of the crowd, but tonight her head hurts and she just doesn’t know what she’s even doing.

She takes a breath and tries to focus on something. 

Reading hasn’t really been helping, despite the book that she’s currently on being riveting. Harry had recommended her a few books that she had been able to get advanced copies of because of the book publishing company that Louis bought the other month. It’s just nothing is able to keep her attention for too long. Her mind keeps wandering. 

Zayn’s with her family, spending some time with them, and while Niall is a little jealous, Zayn has been sure to include her in everything she possibly can. She gets it, though. Trisha and Yaser want to spend some time with their daughter before she gets married. Niall _gets_ that, she does. It just stings a little. But she’s a big girl and she’s getting over it. Trying to, at least. 

Focusing on something to take her mind off things when the house and its occupants are so noisy is beginning to be a bit harder to do than Niall expected. 

She watches everyone around her. All of Louis’ sisters are playing a board game, laughing their heads off at something. All of the toddlers and babies are asleep, having been put down shortly after dinner. The grown-ups are all enjoying some wine, or beer, or other forms of alcohol and are chatting outside. 

It feels like a snapshot of what Niall’s future is going to be like.

She’s really looking forward to it.

As hard as these last few days have been, Niall is looking forward to her future. The one that she and Zayn are going to make together. It’s daunting, of course, but she’s accepting it.

Her attention catches on Louis and Harry who are sitting smushed into a singular arm chair together. It’s something they’ve been doing for as long as their relationship started, and it’s kind of sweet to watch. 

They’re not actively participating in the board game going on at the coffee table, but Louis keeps throwing out her opinion every now and then, earning either exasperated looks from her sisters, or happy smiles, depending on how her advice turns out.

At the moment, the four Tomlinson sisters are battling out the game Louis-free, and Louis is completely wrapped up in Harry. Harry who’s smiling at Louis like she personally hung the moon. Niall knows that look. It’s a look that she knows when she looks at Zayn. She’s worn that expression for years.

Just watching Harry and Louis warms Niall’s heart. Louis looks tired; there’s dark circles under her eyes, but her expression is so fond and so filled with love that Niall thinks she should really look away, lest she be intruding on a private moment.

They don’t even realise it, either, but Harry and Louis move completely in sync with each other. It’s amusing that they don’t know it, but Niall isn’t going to tell them and spoil her own fun. They move their heads at the exact same time when Daisy exclaims that Phoebe is cheating, and their expressions are identical, too. It’s amusing to watch. 

Niall can’t help but wonder if she and Zayn are that in sync, too. She gives it a moment’s thought, then considers that they probably are. She’s been with Zayn for _years_ now – even their periods are in sync. 

After a while, Zayn wanders in and spots Niall, her face lighting up when she sees her. Niall grins back, happy that she evokes such a reaction from Zayn. She hopes it’s one that will never stop happening, too.

“Alright?” Zayn asks.

Niall nods. “Yeah. Got a bit of a headache, but sleep will probably fix that.”

“C’mon,” Zayn says, slipping her hand into Niall’s. “Let’s go to bed then.”

~*~

The house is finally quiet.

Niall sighs and sits up in bed. Zayn is sound asleep next to her, deep in slumber. Niall is a little jealous right now. She presses a soft kiss to the top of Zayn’s head before she climbs out of bed. She shuffles around the room as quietly as possible, pulling on some clothes that she had been wearing earlier. She picks up her favourite notebook and pen, and grabs her guitar as well. She hasn’t touched her baby in _days_ , not since they got to Barcelona, at least. Not with everything that has been going on.

She slings her guitar across her back and exits the bedroom, closing the door silently behind her. She makes her way through the house, downstairs, and out onto the beach. The moon is almost full in the sky, giving Niall enough light to walk along the beach. 

She stops after a few metres and pulls out her phone, taking a short video of the ocean’s small waves lapping at the sand before ebbing back. She uploads the video to Instagram with some cheesy caption before shutting off her phone and stuffing it back in her pocket. Even though Niall’s feelings are all over the place right now, she can appreciate the beauty of the beach at night for the simplicity that it is. And she knows that when all of this is over, when she and Zayn are married and living their happily ever after, she’ll be glad that she stopped to take a moment to appreciate the beauty of this moonlit night on the beach. With that thought, Niall keeps walking further away from the house. 

The sand is warm between her toes as she walks far enough away from the house that hopefully no one will hear her. She sits down on the sand and lets out a big sigh. The moon isn’t bright enough that Niall can really see what’s written in her notebook, but she opens it anyway, more out of habit than actual necessity. She sets it down next to her and pulls her guitar into her lap, strumming it once to make sure that it’s in tune.

Once she’s satisfied that it’s tuned properly, Niall strums out a wordless melody. She closes her eyes and loses herself in the familiarity of her fingers pressing against the strings on the fret. The song comes out naturally, each chord played perfectly, like it is every single time Niall plays it. She hums under her breath, not really singing, but getting the lyrics right in her head.

She stops after a long while, picking up her notebook and turning to a clean page to jot something down. She’s so engrossed in her work that she doesn’t even notice someone approaching until Zayn sits down next to her.

“Bed was cold without you,” Zayn says by way of greeting. “What’re you doing?”

“Couldn’t sleep,” Niall says with a shrug. She closes her notebook and tucks the pen into the spirals. 

Zayn reaches over and laces her fingers in Niall’s. “Talk to me, jaan.”

The smallest of smiles twitches at the corners of Niall’s lips at the affectionate nickname. “What do you want me to talk about?”

“What’s going on in that chaotic head of yours?” Zayn asks. She squeezes Niall’s fingers ever so slightly. “You’ve barely eaten in days, you’re quieter than usual, and I’m worried about you.”

Niall closes her eyes and nods. “Yeah,” she mumbles. “Sorry about that.”

“Niall,” Zayn says, and it’s as close to exasperation that Niall has ever heard come from her. “I’m your _fiancée_ , I’m allowed to worry about you.” She takes a breath and shifts so she’s facing Niall better. “You’ve lost weight, and you’re tiny already. I can’t begin to imagine how hard this week has been for you. But I’m _here_ , alright? To talk to, to vent at, whatever you need.”

“I love you,” Niall says when Zayn falls silent. “I love that you don’t push me. That you just _know_ what to say and how to act. And the fact that you haven’t given up on me, even with all of the bullshit that my parents have pulled over the years. And especially this week. I love that you talk to me in sentences that are _long_ and eloquent. Because not everyone gets to see that side of you, but you chose me to show it to. And I _love_ it. I love _all_ of your parts, Zayn.”

“I love _all_ of your parts too, Niall,” Zayn says. She presses her forehead to Niall’s temple. “ _Every_ single part of me loves every single part of you. I have since the moment you opened that beautifully loud Irish mouth and swore as you fell up the stairs and right into me.”

Niall chuckles at the memory of her first day of school. She met Zayn straight away. Well, stumbled into her was more like it, but Zayn, ever the enigma, just shrugged it off and led her to the front office to get Niall sorted out. 

“We’ll get through this,” Zayn continues after a few moments of silence. “You and me, yeah?”

“Yeah,” Niall echoes. “Yeah.”

Zayn gives her a small smile and kisses her cheek. “I can’t wait to marry you, you know.”

“Yeah?” Niall asks, turning her head to face Zayn a little better. 

Zayn nods. “I’ve been thinking about it for a while, and after Louis proposed to Harry, I just _knew_ that I needed to do it soon.”

“You’re such a romantic,” Niall teases. She throws her arms around Zayn, the force of her movement pushing them both into the sand. Zayn’s hands wind around Niall’s back, holding her in place. 

“You’re going to look so beautiful,” Zayn starts. “I bet I’ll be nervous.”

“Cold feet?”

Zayn shakes her head. “The opposite,” she says. She lifts a hand to brush a strand of Niall’s hair out of her eyes. “Nervous because everyone is going to see how utterly gone for you I am. Nervous that every single one of our friends and family are going to know that we’re shagging on our wedding night –”

“Too right we are,” Niall interrupts. “I’m not being celibate on our wedding night! My period will be finished by then thankfully.”

Zayn grins at her, leaning up to kiss Niall soundly on the lips. “Nervous because what if you realise you don’t want to spend the rest of your life with me.”

Niall rears back, sitting up completely. “Zayn,” she says seriously. “You don’t honestly think that, do you?”

Wordlessly, Zayn shrugs and turns her gaze away.

“ _Zayn_ ,” Niall says emphatically. “ _Christ_. Of course I want to spend the rest of my life with you, you twat. There’s absolutely no one and nothing in this world that I love more than you. And I don’t want you ever worrying about that. _Idiot_ ,” she adds on fondly.

“A scared idiot,” Zayn says quietly. “With everything that happened with Bobby and Maura, I’m just scared that you’ll realise it isn’t worth losing your family over.”

“ _You_ are my family,” Niall says forcefully. “You said that to me the other night, right here on this beach, remember?” Zayn nods. “Good. Because this is it. It’s you and me. From here on out. Forever and ever amen.”

Zayn stays silent for a few long moments and Niall shifts, uncrossing her legs from underneath her. 

“It’s just a lot, you know?”

“Yeah, I do know,” Niall agrees. “ _I_ am a lot. I’ve got a shitload of baggage.”

“We’ll share it together,” Zayn says seriously then immediately crinkles her nose. “God that was cheesy.”

Niall laughs, leaning into Zayn a little more. “Yeah, it was. But I love it.”

Zayn smiles. She’s so beautiful that it makes Niall’s heart hurt. She’s so thankful that Zayn is hers. That they get to do this. To be together for the rest of their lives. She knows that with Zayn by her side, she’ll get through anything.

“C’mon,” Zayn says a short while later. “Let’s get some sleep. Harry wants to take you dress shopping tomorrow.”

Niall groans and flops back onto the sand. Maybe she was a bit too quick to think that they could get through _anything_. 

Zayn tugs on her hand so she’s standing. Niall gathers her things and lets Zayn lead her back into the house. She’s faced a lot worse than Harry Styles taking her dress shopping. But if she doesn’t get some sleep first, it’ll be far worse than it has to be, that’s for sure.

~*~

Organising a wedding in less than a week is both ridiculous and fun, Niall thinks. All they really need is someone to marry them and plenty of food. They have their own private beach to get married on, and with all of their friends and families present there really isn’t much left to do except tie the knot.

What Niall doesn’t understand is why Harry is insistent on dragging her out to buy a dress for the occasion. Niall is perfectly happy getting married in her bikini as long as she’s getting married to Zayn.

“It’s not about the clothes,” Harry insists for the five hundredth time that morning. Zayn got it lucky going out with Louis, Niall thinks. At least it will be quick and probably painless. Unlike this shopping expedition with Harry.

Niall sighs. “Haz,” she begins. “I get that, I _do_ , but I don’t have _any_ money. Anything I had in my bank account is gone because my par- because Bobby and Maura still had access to my accounts, and the cash I have on me has to see me through the rest of this holiday.” She doesn’t even want to _think_ about anything honeymoon like. It’ll just bum her out even more.

Even though it’s only been a few days since her parents disowned her, Niall still isn’t over it. She doesn’t think that she’ll be over it for a while, actually. A part of her (however small it may have been) had hoped that they would surprise her and be cool with the fact that Niall was a) getting married, and b) getting married to girl. It’s crushing her a little, the feeling of being right when she didn’t want to be.

“Don’t worry about money,” Harry says. 

_That’s easy to say, you’ve got it_ , Niall thinks bitterly. Then immediately scolds herself for thinking such a thought about her best friend.

“Louis got you a present,” Harry continues, oblivious. “But she wanted me to give it to you because she thought it might be weird.”

Harry thrusts an envelope at her and Niall accepts it warily. She opens it and a black credit card falls out, embossed with Niall’s name. Her new, married name. She isn’t even sure _how_ Louis managed to pull this off, but that’s the power of Louis Tomlinson, she figures.

“Do you like it?” Harry asks, bouncing on the balls of her feet.

They’re standing in the middle of a busy street, traffic honking at them to move. Niall feels herself being dragged to the side, in front of a string of shops. She stares at the card in her hand. This small plastic black rectangle could solve _all_ of her financial issues. Literally every single financial issue that Niall has, or ever will have, can be solved by this card.

“I can’t accept this.”

“Louis said you’d say that,” Harry says. “But she says she knows you have your own income, and that things are awkward right now, especially because we’re in another country. So she wants you to use it while you’re on holidays. She said it's her wedding present to you.”

Niall looks up at Harry’s earnest expression and bites her lip.

“And she said that you can cut it up when you get back to England and open your own bank account and stuff. Or keep it. She doesn’t mind either way.”

 _Fuck_.

Niall is going to start crying there, right in front of some shop that has amazing smells wafting out of it.

“The dress though? That’s _my_ wedding present to you. Okay?” Harry says. She steps closer, hesitant in her movements, and she gently takes Niall’s hand in her own. “Please let us do this for you. We can’t help in many ways, but Louis and I really talked about all of this the other night, and she feels like this is the only thing that she can do for you that will actually make a difference.”

Niall nods dumbly. “You said something about dresses?” She swallows the lump in her throat, fighting back tears.

Harry’s right – this credit card will help. It’s a great gift, one that she isn’t going to use much, if at all, but it’s something. 

She pulls her phone out and shoots Louis a text to say thank you. Louis just texts her back a smiling emoji. She figures it’s probably as awkward for Louis as it is for her.

Niall follows Harry into one of the shops, beautiful dresses displayed in the windows. She sighs and tries to school her emotions. Crying right now won’t help her choose a dress to get married in.

Harry is in her element, because of course she is. She loves dresses and being pretty and feeling like a princess. Niall isn’t fussed one way or another. She likes functional over formal, and practical over pretty. But as much as she wants to hate this experience, Harry’s enthusiasm rubs off on her, and soon, she’s trying on dress after dress, trying to find something that she likes. 

Sooner than she thinks it will happen, the right dress comes to her. It’s a lovely lilac colour, flowy around her legs and sleeveless. She tries it on and turns in front of the mirrors, admiring her reflection. As she steps out of the dressing room, she knows there is a smile on her face. Harry beams at her. 

“That’s it, isn’t it?”

Niall nods. “Yeah, it is.”

She smooths her hands over the soft fabric and looks at her reflection in the trio of full length mirrors that capture her from all sides. She can definitely see herself getting married to Zayn in this dress. 

“Take it off then and we’ll get it,” Harry says, her voice soft as she steps next to Niall, catching her gaze in their reflections. “You look good, Niall. Zayn is a lucky woman.”

Niall ducks her head, nodding. “We both are.”

With that task out of the way, Niall is eager to get back to Zayn and just relax. She just needs to shut off from the world now. 

Thankfully, Harry seems to understand, and they’re heading back to the house. She expects Zayn to be there, but Trisha and Zayn are both missing, and surprisingly, so is Louis. When Niall turns to ask Harry what’s going on, she just shrugs and makes her way over to where Sophia and Liam are playing with Willow. 

Niall excuses herself and goes to lie down, flopping across the unmade bed and wishing that Zayn was with her. She gets up and showers, wondering if Zayn would be up for something easy for dinner, then she remembers that Zayn’s family are here, and that she would probably want to be spending time with them.

With a sigh, Niall wraps a towel around her body, and exits the bathroom. She climbs into bed, throws the towel off to the side and switches on the television, letting whatever is on lull her to sleep.

The bed dips and Niall startles awake.

“Shh, it’s only me.” Zayn’s hand is gentle in her hair, smoothing back the short strands. “Come get some dinner, babes.”

Niall yawns, sitting up and stretching. “You alright?”

“Yeah, you?”

Niall nods. “I’ve got a dress for the wedding.”

“Me too. Mum picked out something for me since I’m not going to be wearing traditional Pakistani attire.”

Niall sits up and bites her bottom lip. “Do you want to be wearing traditional Pakistani attire for your wedding?”

“Not really,” Zayn replies. “It’s a bit hot for all of that fabric. Besides, we can always renew our vows in a few years and we can wear something traditional.”

Niall nods. “If you’re sure.”

“I’m sure,” Zayn insists. “I’m _sure_ ,” she repeats. She gently cups Niall’s face in her soft, soft hands and kisses her so tenderly that Niall thinks she might start crying.

“I love you so much,” Niall whispers against Zayn’s lips.

“I love you too.” Zayn kisses her again, pressing closer. It’s only then that Niall realises that she’s still completely naked from her shower earlier and that Zayn is fully clothed. 

“Maybe we could have dessert first before dinner?” Niall suggests, tugging at the hem of Zayn’s shirt. Zayn laughs against Niall’s lips and pulls back to whip her shirt off.

“Sounds good to me.”

~*~

The day of the wedding brings more surprises than Niall expects. She wasn’t expecting anything, actually, seeing as the whole thing was thrown together in a matter of days, but she wakes up to an amazing breakfast cooked by Harry, and then is whisked away to a salon where her hair is professionally done. Which stuns her, because she’d be more than happy letting Lottie do her hair – she’s incredibly talented with all things hair and make-up.

When she’s grabbing a sandwich for a late lunch, the front door opens and in walks Gemma, followed by a stunningly gorgeous woman that causes Niall to lose her breath for a moment.

“What?” Niall asks, gobsmacked. 

Gemma grins and scoops Niall up in a massive hug, being mindful of her hair as she does. “I can’t believe you’re getting married!” 

Still shocked, Niall pokes Gemma in the cheek. “What are you doing here? _How_ are you here?”

“Mum told me that you were getting married. As if I could miss this!” 

Niall feels her heart swell with love as Gemma hugs her again. She bites back the emotions that threaten to spill over as she clings tightly to Gemma. 

“This is Anissa,” Gemma says as she pulls back, turning to face the gorgeous woman standing just behind her. “My girlfriend.”

Niall gives her a warm smile. “Harry’s told me all about you. It’s lovely to meet you.”

Anissa nods and shakes Niall’s hand. Niall laughs and pulls her in for a hug instead. “I’ve heard a lot about you, too.”

It’s her accent that does it for Niall, causing her to well up. A few tears escape and she hastily brushes them aside. 

“Sorry, I’ve been a bit emotional lately,” Niall apologises. 

“Don’t be daft. You’ve got nothing to be sorry for,” Gemma says. She takes Niall’s hand in her own. “Harry filled me in on everything. How are you feeling?”

“Overwhelmed,” Niall responds honestly. It’s Gemma – she couldn’t hide these things from her even if she wanted to. 

Gemma hugs her again. “You’ve probably heard this a bit, but I love you a _lot_ Niall.”

“I love you too, Gems.”

Gemma kisses her cheek softly. “Let me go put our stuff in our room and then I’ll be back for food and chats, alright?”

Niall nods. “Alright.”

To Niall’s surprise, Gemma grabs both suitcases and makes her way through the house. Anissa sits down at the table across from Niall and gives her an awkward smile.

“Gemma says you’ve had a rough week.”

“You could say that,” Niall replies. She traces a finger along the rim of her glass of orange juice. 

“I’m sorry you’re going through that,” Anissa says. “My parents _really_ struggled with my sexuality when I came out. I actually thought I was going to get kicked out of home. I know that isn’t the same, of course, and I know that we don’t know each other, but if you ever need to talk to someone who understands a bit about what it’s like, I’m more than willing to listen.”

“Thank you,” Niall says sincerely. 

Gemma reappears and heads straight for the fridge. “Niss, what do you want to eat? There’s heaps of food in here.”

“Just a sandwich, please,” Anissa replies. She gets up and joins Gemma at the fridge. 

Niall fiddles with her glass before taking a sip. She pulls out her phone and opens the thread of messages between herself and her mum. There isn’t much in there but it makes Niall’s heart hurt. With a steely resolve, Niall deletes the thread and then both of her parents’ numbers. She doesn’t need the reminder of them anymore. She isn’t over it – not by a long shot, but this is the first step she needs to take to start healing properly. 

Gemma and Anissa sit back down at the table with plates of sandwiches and glasses filled with drinks, their shoulders knocking together as they sit closely. It reminds Niall of herself and Zayn and how they acted when they started being girlfriends. It’s cute, she thinks. They’re sweet. 

“So,” Gemma says. “Are you excited about getting married?”

“Yeah, I am,” Niall replies easily. 

That’s the one thing she is absolutely sure of – marrying Zayn is the best decision she’s ever made. 

She listens to Gemma and Anissa talk as they eat. She feels a foot press against hers under the table and she looks up to see Gemma wink at her without missing a beat in their conversation. 

Just as they’re finishing eating, the front door opens and Harry walks in with her parents. She spots Gemma and lets out a squeal so loud that Niall is sure all of the dogs in a five mile radius have heard her. 

Gemma laughs and meets Harry, hugging her tightly. It makes Niall smile to see them together. Harry doesn’t seem to want to let go, even when Anne gets in between them. Niall gets up, taking her plate and glass and putting them in the sink to be washed later. She leaves them all to catch up and she wanders through the house to her and Zayn’s room.

“Not so fast.” Lottie appears seemingly out of nowhere and takes Niall’s hand, leading her into the room she’s sharing with Félicité. 

“What’s going on?” Niall asks. 

“I’ve been instructed to do your make-up,” Lottie says. “I’ve just finished Zayn’s and she’s getting ready. Louis wants photos before the sun goes down and apparently everyone is starting to get ready now.”

“Alright,” Niall replies with a shrug. She sits down in a chair at the room’s desk and pulls her robe a little tighter around her body. The last thing she needs is to accidentally flash Louis’ sisters. 

Félicité crosses the room and passes Lottie an array of make-up pallets. 

“This kind of makes me wish that I had brought the Cinderella collection with me,” Niall comments. Then her face falls. “Shit. Fucking _shit_.”

“What’s wrong?” Lottie asks. 

“All of my make-up is at home… At Bobby and Maura’s house. My clothes. _Everything_. I don’t think they’ll let me have my stuff.”

Lottie breathes a sigh of relief. “Louis took care of that.”

“What?” Niall asks, confused. 

“I overheard her on the phone the other day,” Félicité begins. “She went in and cleared all of your stuff. Apparently Bobby threatened to sue but Louis wouldn’t have any of it.”

“Wait _what_?” Niall repeats, even more confused than she already is. “ _Louis_ went? As in herself?”

“...Yeah,” Lottie says, her brow furrowing slightly. “Didn’t you know?”

Niall shakes her head. “No, I didn’t.”

“That’s where she was the other day. Why she wasn’t around until late in the evening,” Félicité explains with an easy shrug. “She took a flight back early in the morning the day after she found out that your parents disowned you and she went and hit them with a bunch of legal things. The legal part got boring, so I stopped listening.”

Niall slumps against the seat. “She… she did all of that? For me?”

Lottie nods. “Louis really loves you. She’s a bit fierce about the people she loves.”

“I’ve noticed,” Niall says faintly. Her mind whirs, trying to remember her interactions with Louis before and after she told her what had happened with her parents. But the days after that phone call with her mum seem to blur together. Both Harry and Zayn hadn’t let Niall out of their sight much, so all she can think of is them. 

She isn’t completely sure how she missed out on Louis completely leaving the country, but she did. And now she’s unsure of what to do or say to Louis. How does she begin to thank someone for things like this? 

“Alright, are you thinking bold or subtle for your make-up?” Lottie asks. 

“Subtle,” Niall replies. “My dress is lilac so bold would clash.”

Lottie nods. “Subtle it is.” She closes her eyes and lets Lottie work her magic on her. Félicité leaves the room and disappears for a few moments, leaving Lottie and Niall completely alone. She barely even notices when Félicité returns, something rustling in her hands. Niall keeps her eyes closed as Lottie works on her eyeshadow. 

When Lottie has finished, Niall feels like a new woman. She doesn’t use make-up that much herself. She lets Zayn do her eyeliner every now and then, but Niall isn’t usually one to wear too much. It’s not because she doesn’t like it, it’s just that she can’t be bothered with the upkeep. She’s been experimenting more since Louis got her the Cinderella MAC collection. Which she absolutely loves. The tones and colours are _very_ her. 

A knock on the door startles Niall and she looks over to see Jay’s dark head of hair appear. With all of the events that had happened this week, Niall hasn’t really spent much time with her.

“Everyone is heading down to the beach,” she says. “Are you almost ready?”

Niall nods. “Just gotta get in me dress.”

She smiles. “Alright, see you soon.”

The door closes and Niall turns to Lottie and Félicité. “It’s all happening.”

Félicité smiles and passes Niall her dress. “Here you go,” she says. 

“Thank you.” She accepts the dress and shrugs off her robe, laying it over the back of the chair she was just sitting in. She pulls on the dress and zips it up, smoothing her hands down over it. “How does it look?”

“You look beautiful,” Lottie says. 

Félicité grins and holds up her phone. “Give us a smile.”

Niall beams at her and the sound of a fake camera shutter goes off. 

“Alright, we’d better go,” Lottie says. She makes quick work of pulling on her own dress, followed by a strappy pair of sandals. 

Niall takes a breath and lets Lottie and Félicité lead her from the room. She passes off her phone to Lottie before they leave the house. 

The sun is getting lower in the sky and everyone is out on the beach already. There’s a makeshift path leading to an arch that is covered with flowers. At the end stands Liam, looking very professional and very beautiful in her suit. 

“Ready, love?” Anne says, stepping up to Niall’s side. 

They decided that Niall was going to walk up the aisle first, then Zayn. Niall figured that Louis would want to give her away, but when the subject had been broached, Louis just shook her head and told Niall to ask Anne. 

It was the best decision, Niall thinks. Anne has been more of a mum to Niall her entire life than Maura ever was. Even though Niall used to have a crush on her when she first met Anne, it was fleeting, and she’s always thought of Anne has her pseudo-mum. 

Harry’s there, clicking away with her camera, taking what is probably a ridiculous amount of photos. Niall smiles at her, causing Harry to lower the camera and give her a big smile in return. Another woman is standing next to Harry, also taking photos, and Niall vaguely remembers being told about Beth, the same woman who did Harry’s 5 million Instagram followers photo shoot, being the one hired to take Niall and Zayn’s wedding photos, too. She must be good, Niall thinks, if Louis is hiring her twice in the space of one holiday period. 

“Ready,” Niall says to Anne, accepting her offered arm.

The music starts and they walk down the aisle together, stopping once they reach Liam. Anne presses a soft kiss to Niall’s cheek.

“I love you like you’re my own daughter, Niall,” Anne says softly. “I am so happy for you.”

Niall feels tears pricking the backs of her eyes. “Thanks, Anne.”

Anne squeezes her hand gently and sits down in the front row on what looks like Niall’s side of the aisle. It warms her inside knowing how many people are here. That are here to witness Niall and Zayn getting married.

She turns her head as Zayn walks up the aisle on Yaser’s arm. She looks absolutely stunning, and Niall feels like her heart stops in her chest at the sight.

Her dress is red, floor length, and sits off-the-shoulder. Her hair is down, curled slightly, no doubt done by Doniya. Zayn reaches Niall a moment later and Yaser kisses his daughter’s cheek, mumbling something to her in Urdu that Niall can’t hear, but has Zayn smiling and nodding at him. 

“Hi,” Niall says stupidly.

“Hi,” Zayn replies with a smile.

Liam clears her throat, nodding at them both, and the ceremony begins. Niall listens to Liam’s strong voice carry out over them and the crowd of people here. She repeats what she needs to, speaking the words to Zayn. 

Their own vows are short and concise, which Niall is thankful for. She wasn’t exactly sure what to write with her own vows, but what she says has Zayn smiling, so she thinks she can’t be that far off the mark. Zayn’s vows are beautiful and eloquent. Niall feels herself welling up by the time that Zayn has finished them. 

They exchange rings - rings that Zayn and Louis had gone to buy the day that Harry took Niall out to get her wedding dress. The ring is simple, but the engraving on the inside makes Niall’s heart swell with love. 

“I now pronounce you wife and wife,” Liam says after what feels like forever. “You may now kiss the bride.”

Niall grins and steps closer to Zayn, curling an arm around Zayn’s middle as she kisses her wife soundly on the lips. 

She’s married. 

Holy shit she’s married. She has a _wife_. A wife who is also her best friend.

Niall isn’t sure how she got this lucky.

Cheers go up around them and Niall pulls back from the kiss a little dazed but so very, very happy.

“I love you,” Zayn says, pressing her forehead into Niall’s collarbone.

“I love you too, _Mrs_ Malik.”

Zayn laughs, the vibrations tickling Niall’s skin. They part enough to walk back down the aisle together. Harry is at the end, snapping photos with her camera, capturing this amazing moment forever.

~*~

This is the happiest Niall has felt since Zayn inadvertently proposed. Their friends and families surround them, celebrating her and Zayn’s marriage. Well, it started out like that, but now people are getting a little happy on the sangria that Harry had made. Most of the younger kids are in bed, with only Daisy and Phoebe pushing Jay and Dan to stay up later.

At some point, Harry had set up music and when the first notes of Tyler Joseph’s cover of _Can’t Help Falling In Love_ started, Zayn took Niall’s hand and pulled her close, swaying with her on the sand. She loves that this is their wedding song. It’s a beautiful song, and the fact that Zayn chose it to be _theirs_ makes Niall’s heart fill with more love than she thought was possible. 

Now, she sits with Zayn on her lap, sharing some delicious cake that Niall isn’t sure who made or where it came from but it’s _delicious_ and it’s food. She feels like she hasn’t actually eaten since the phone call with her parents. And really, she hasn’t eaten that much, feeling too sick because of the outcome to think about the things she normally did.

But now, in this moment at least, she doesn’t care about them. She has the love of her life in her arms, and is _married_. They did this. Together. This entire day has been _so_ wonderful. Niall isn’t sure that she deserves so much love but she’s enjoying basking in it.

“More sangria?” Harry asks, appearing with three mason jars filled with the red liquid. She’s tipsy, giggling at nothing, and swaying where she stands.

Niall holds her hand out for two of the glasses, passing one to Zayn as well. “Cheers,” she says, lifting the drink in Harry’s direction before taking a big swig. “God that’s _strong_!”

Harry giggles, sitting down in the sand at Niall’s feet. “I _may_ have slipped… Just a little.”

Niall reaches around Zayn and pats the top of Harry’s head. “Never change, Haz.”

Harry beams at her. “Today has been beautiful.”

“Yeah,” Zayn says softly. “It has.” She shifts on Niall’s lap and ducks her head to kiss Niall, their lips sliding together, a little sticky from the alcohol they have been consuming. 

When they part, Niall loses herself in Zayn’s eyes. She sees everything in there. Love, stability. _Hope_. Her entire future is there. Zayn’s gaze is filled with promises that she intends to keep. Niall couldn’t love her more.

“I’m glad Louis made sure that Yaser came,” Harry says, breaking Niall’s train of thoughts. “He looks so happy dancing with Trisha.”

Niall blinks, looking over to where Zayn’s parents are, indeed, wrapped around each other, dancing in the sand. “What did Louis have to do with it?”

“She phoned Yaser and yelled at him. It was _so sexy_. I ate Louis out for about an hour afterwards,” Harry sighs wistfully and Niall knows that she’s thinking about sex. “She just oozes sex appeal when she gets all bossy like that. It turns me on so much. Did you know that she does it on purpose sometimes? Just to get me wet. I fucking love her.”

Zayn and Niall both snort. 

Zayn reaches down and pats Harry on top of her head. “Harry, you’re oversharing a bit because you’re drunk.”

Harry hums and nods. “Possibly.” She tilts her head back to rest on Niall’s leg, the curls of her hair tickling Niall’s bare skin. “I’m horny. I’m gonna go find Louis and see if she’ll finger me in the ocean again.”

Niall chokes on her drink, setting it down so she can cough a few times. “You… you go do that, Haz.”

Harry gets up, swaying a little as she does. She leans over and kisses Niall soundly on the lips, then Zayn. “I hope you both have amazing sex tonight!” she flounces off, the skirt of her dress swishing around her upper thighs as she goes.

“Well, I do too,” Zayn says once they’re alone. “I think we can get away with leaving the party now, don’t you think?”

Niall watches as Zayn licks her lips and she nods, her pulse spiking. “Yeah. _Yeah_ , definitely.”

Zayn gets up and holds her hand out for Niall to take. They almost make it back to the house before anyone sees them, but of course Zayn’s parents stop them before they can step inside.

“I’m so happy for you both,” Trisha starts. She hugs them both at once, her arms warm around Niall’s shoulders. “I don’t want to say ‘welcome’ to the family, Niall, because I believe you’ve always been a part of it.”

“Thank you, Trisha,” Niall replies. “That means a lot to me.”

“I…” Yaser begins, looking a little uncomfortable. “I love you both a lot. Thank you for making our daughter happy, Niall.”

Niall is a little surprised. Yaser hasn’t really ever shown much emotion around Niall, and she understands that his love is for his family and his family alone. To be included in that feels _enormous_. Niall throws her arms around Yaser’s middle in a tight hug, breathing a sigh of relief when he hugs her back.

“Thank you,” she mumbles into his shirt. “ _Thank you_.”

They part and Yaser gives Niall a nod. He says something to her in Urdu and Niall smiles, replying in the language, causing Yaser to give her a warm, proud smile. She loves that he’s happy that she knows the language of where he came from. As if Niall _wouldn’t_ learn one of the languages that her best friend spoke at home with her family. It means a lot to Zayn, and therefore it means a lot to Niall. Zayn’s hand slips into her own, their fingers lacing together, squeezing gently. 

“We’ll leave you to it. Have a lovely night,” Trisha says.

“Thank you, you too,” Niall replies. She gives them a small wave and follows Zayn inside. 

“I feel like I’ve got sand _everywhere_ ,” Zayn says as they step into their room. She unzips her dress and lets out a sigh. 

“Me too.” Niall says. She strips off her dress too, hanging it on the back of the door next to Zayn’s. “Let’s go get washed.”

Zayn follows her into their ensuite bathroom, her hands grabbing gently at Niall’s hips. “I love you.”

Niall grins, turning in Zayn’s arms. “I love you too.” She kisses Zayn, enjoying their moment together. 

They part long enough to turn on the shower and step in, immediately crowding into each other’s space the moment they can. Niall can’t stop smiling. This entire day really has been perfect.

“What are you thinking?” Zayn asks, tracing her finger down Niall’s glabella. She tilts her head and kisses Niall’s cheek softly, then down Niall’s neck.

“I’m thinking about how happy you make me,” Niall replies. Zayn smiles against her neck. “And about getting my tongue on you the second we get out of the bathroom.”

Zayn chuckles and lifts her head so they’re facing each other again. “Let’s get this shower over with, then.”

They each hastily wash, the sand rinsing off their bodies and sticking to the floor of the shower. Niall exits the shower first, speedily drying herself off before throwing herself onto the bed. Zayn joins her a moment later, turning the main room lights off and climbing onto the bed on top of Niall.

“So,” she begins, tracing her finger between Niall’s breasts and down to her belly button. “How do you want to first have sex as a married couple?”

“Sixty-nine?” Niall offers. “Mutual orgasms to consummate this marriage?” She wiggles her eyebrows suggestively, making Zayn choke back a laugh. She wraps her arms around Zayn and rolls them both so she’s on top, giving Zayn what she hopes is a sultry look.

Zayn cups Niall’s face with her hand, her thumb smoothing over the mound of Niall’s cheekbone. “We could always go have sex in the sea just to piss Harry off.”

Niall snorts, pressing her face into Zayn’s hand. “She’d be _so_ offended over that.”

“She would,” Zayn agrees. She lifts her head to kiss Niall and Niall sighs against Zayn’s lips. She loses herself in the kiss, loses herself in Zayn and how loved she feels. 

And as Zayn’s naked body slides against her own as they make love for the first time as a married couple, Niall realises that she can handle anything as long as Zayn is by her side.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi again. If you've got this far, I hope you enjoyed this part. ♥
> 
> This is one of my favourite parts/points of view in this entire fic, and I really love it a lot. If you like it to, please leave me a comment. I appreciate it so very much a lot.
> 
> okay. this part has **spoilers** for this chapter I just posted.  
> I do not think that Bobby and Maura are homophobic. I do not know them at all, and they were just used as pieces for this part to be made the way that it needed to be made. Thank you.
> 
>  
> 
> rebloggable post on my [tumblr](http://star55.tumblr.com/post/182333551851)


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Again, tags have been updated to reflect the upcoming chapter.
> 
> Massive thank yous to Jay and Leah for the cheerleading, and to Jada for the beta read. It is very much appreciated. ♥
> 
> Also! _huge_ thank yous to [Amber](http://loveloveolivia.tumblr.com) for answering all of my annoying Amsterdamn related questions - your help was invaluable. I cannot thank you enough. ♥♥♥
> 
> !! Spoiler for the current chapter !!
> 
> Okay, there is mention of homelessness. It's for an OC, so I wasn't sure if I should warn for it or not. Please let me know if you think I need to update the tags to reflect this. Thank you.  
> ♥

~*~  
_Louis_

Louis takes off her glasses and rubs her eyes. It’s ridiculously late. Or quite early, depending on who you are. Either way, she hasn’t been to sleep since the night before and she’s really starting to feel it. This getting older thing sucks, she decides. Especially if it’s going to keep her from being able to comfortably stay up all hours of the night like she used to be able to. She slips her glasses back onto her face as she yawns and picks up her pen again, trying to remember what she was writing down.

Their last day in Barcelona is tomorrow. Well, today, she realises. Another yawn escapes her and she sags against the chair she’s in. She closes her book over, making a mental note to come back to that when she’s more awake. 

“Poppet? What are you doing up?”

Louis looks up to see her Mum wandering into the kitchen where Louis is working at the table, Doris in her arms. Doris looks upset, but still half asleep. 

“Needed to get some things done,” she replies, closing the lid of her laptop as well. It all can wait until she’s able to function with higher brain capacity. 

“It’s a bit late,” Jay comments. She sways on the spot, her hold firm on Doris’ little body. 

“Want me to take her?” Louis asks, nodding at her sister in their mum’s arms.

Jay shakes her head. “I’ve got it. She’s almost asleep again.”

Louis yawns widely.

“Which is what _you_ should be doing, too.”

Louis’ lips quirk in a smile. “Soon, I promise.”

“What’s got you staying up so late anyway?” Jay sits down in a chair, adjusting Doris in her arms so she’s a little more comfortable.

“Just some work stuff,” Louis replies. She stretches her legs out, wriggling her toes before moving one foot up onto the seat of the chair. She drapes her arms around her leg, letting her chin rest on her knee. 

“You’re meant to be on holiday, Lou.”

“I know,” Louis says with a sigh. “I know, I just needed to approve some things, and then I got caught up between wedding plans and work things, and making sure that Niall and Zayn’s honeymoon is all organised.”

“I know it’s just going to go in one ear and out the other, but you deserve to have a break, too, love. You’ve done _so much_ already. And not just for Niall and Zayn, either.”

Louis shrugs one shoulder, turning so her cheek is resting on her knee. “I just feel like I can do more.”

“You’ve always been like that,” Jay comments, fondness lacing her tone. “‘ _C’mon, Mum, let’s make someone happy today_ ’.”

Louis can’t help but grin at her mum parroting her own words back to her. Warmth fills her at the memory of those words alone, but also with every time her mum would indulge her and go along with whatever Louis wanted to do to make someone happy. It’s only grown the older she gets. Louis knows how a simple act of kindness can brighten someone’s day, and she’s determined to always be able to do that for the people she can. Especially the people she loves.

“Your heart is bigger than anyone I’ve ever met,” Jay continues. “You make a mum proud, Louis.”

She shakes her head, trying to keep the tears that are pricking the backs of her eyes at bay. “You’re the one who raised me like this.”

Jay’s soft smile is everything to Louis. “You, my angel, are the one who takes it above and beyond, every single time. Where some people would think ‘that’s enough’ you always go one or ten steps further. Right down to the stuff that happened with Niall recently. Other people would’ve just flown Zayn’s parents out here and been done with it. Not you, poppet. You got her parents here, paid for _everything_ , flew back to England to give her parents a piece of your mind, legally changed everything of Niall’s so that it rightfully belongs to her, as it should have. Honestly, I have half a mind to go over there myself.”

A wet laugh escapes Louis. “ _Mum_.”

“Lou,” Jay says, reaching across the table to take Louis’ hand in her own. “And you’ve single-handedly organised their entire honeymoon. You are a literal angel, Louis.”

She shrugs, unable to form words that would properly encompass how she’s feeling. 

“And I know that your fiancée thinks that you’ve personally hung the moon,” Jay adds. Louis grins at that. “So take some time to yourself. Let someone take care of you, too. You deserve it.”

Louis nods. “I will,” she promises. Her heart feels impossibly large in her chest, filled with love for her mum, her family, and friends, and everything they give to her without even knowing it. 

“Where else are you going on this Euro trip of yours?”

Louis snorts at her mum calling it ‘Euro trip’ and shakes her head. “We’re spending five days in Prague next, followed by nine days in Amsterdam for Pride. Zayn and Niall are coming with us, too. We’d planned that before they got married. And then we’re spending the remainder of our holiday between Milan and Rome before we go home.”

“That sounds absolutely lovely,” Jay says. She glances down at Doris in her arms, who is fast asleep and smiles. Louis can’t help but do the same.

“We need to spend more time back in Donny, too,” Louis says. “I feel like I’m missing out on too much.”

“Nonsense, Lou,” Jay says, shaking her head. “You’ve got your own life in London, and you get back when you can. And soon enough, you’ll be starting a family of your own.”

Louis grins. “I’m pretty sure if Harry could’ve managed it, she would’ve been pregnant the first time we kissed.”

“She’s so good with the kids – all of them,” Jay comments. “Ernie and Doris love her, and she’s spent equal time with the other girls, too. Which not many people do, but Harry won’t have it any other way.”

Just thinking of her fiancée fills Louis with warmth. “She’s pretty great, isn’t she?”

“Just like you are,” Jay says pointedly. “Right, go to bed. I’m still your mum, I can tell you to do that.”

Louis can’t help but laugh. She stands, because of course she’s going to obey her mum. “I love you, Mum.”

“I love you too, Louis.” Jay stands, too, and Louis kisses her mum’s cheek, before kissing the top of Doris’ head. She lets her mum leave first and she shuts off the kitchen light behind her. 

As quietly as she can, Louis re-enters her and Harry’s room. She sets her stuff down and climbs into bed next to her beloved fiancée. Harry makes a soft noise and curls into Louis the moment she’s within reach. Louis kisses the top of Harry’s head, inhaling the soothing scent of her shampoo and within moments, she’s asleep.

~*~

“You don’t have to do so much, you know,” Zayn says, startling Louis out of her thoughts. She looks up and gives Zayn a crooked smile.

“Do what?” she asks, looking over her shoulder at Zayn. Zayn wanders into Louis and Harry’s room that Louis is busy packing up. 

“All of this,” Zayn says, waving the piece of paper that Louis had printed out when she woke. It has all of the booking details for Niall and Zayn’s honeymoon on it that Louis has organised for them. She hasn’t gone _too_ overboard, she thinks. Just booked a couple of hotels in different cities and paid for them. And paid for their air fares. It’s not much, but it’s what she can do.

“I want to,” Louis replies with a shrug. She adds yet another pair of Harry’s underwear to her suitcase and mentally berates herself for buying Harry so many damn pairs of knickers from Victoria’s Secret.

Zayn sighs and sits on the unmade bed. “I know you _want_ to,” she says. “I’m saying you don’t _have_ to.”

“I know I don’t,” Louis says, levelling Zayn with a look. “But it’s just something that I can do to make your honeymoon special.” And to make sure that Niall’s thoughts are as far away from her horrid parents as possible. “Just think of it as a gift,” she adds. She zips up one suitcase and starts on the next, adding whatever her hands touch to it.

Zayn stares at her for a long few moments. “I know what you did with Bobby and Maura.”

Louis’ gaze snaps up to meet Zayn’s. “…I regret nothing.”

Zayn’s laughter makes Louis feel like she’s on the right path at least. “I hate how they’ve treated Niall all these years. I never wanted her to lose her parents, but I’m glad she’s out from under their thumb.”

“Me too,” Louis agrees. “I don’t know everything, but from what I’ve been told, and what I’ve pieced together, I don’t like them much either.”

Zayn hums. She picks up a novel that’s sitting near her and she flicks through the pages. “I appreciate everything you’ve done. Just in case neither Niall nor I have said it.”

Louis shrugs. “It’s no big deal.”

“I have a wife who would say otherwise.”

Letting go of the clothes in her hand, Louis shoves the suitcase over and sits down on the bed next to Zayn. She hooks her feet underneath her and forces herself to make eye contact with Zayn. “When I heard what they had did to Niall, I knew I had to do something. This world… It _shouldn’t_ be so homophobic. _Parents_ shouldn’t homophobic. They have kids out of choice, and they should love them regardless of their sexualities. It just…” she huffs out a breath, fingers curling into the duvet underneath her. “Niall mentioned that her parents had been looking for a reason to disown her, so it seemed like no matter what she did, they were going to do it. But it isn’t _right_. It reinforces the idea that women marrying women is wrong and I just won’t stand for that. I _cannot_ stand for that.”

“I know,” Zayn says softly. She reaches up and gently cups Louis’ neck, her thumb brushing over the pulse point. “I love you for being so protective of her. It’s nice to know that she has someone as amazing as you on her side.”

“Like I’d be anywhere else,” Louis says, leaning a little into Zayn’s touch. “Have you seen Niall? She’s an incredible person.”

Zayn’s grin lights up the entire room. “She is.” She drops her hand back to her lap. “We’ve talked a lot these last few days. Niall wasn’t in a good space for a bit there.”

“Understandable,” Louis replies with a nod.

Zayn shifts to face Louis a little better. “And it’s nice of you to offer, but we’ve decided that we won’t take you up on your offer to move in with you after our honeymoon.”

“Alright,” Louis says. “The offer is _always_ there, yeah?”

“We know,” Zayn replies. “I’ve actually had Mum looking for a flat for us to rent when we get back. She hopes to have something for us to move into by the time we’re back in England.”

“That’s great.” 

Zayn reaches over and laces her fingers through Louis’. “You’re an incredible friend, Louis. I’m so glad that we met you.”

“Me too.”

“For all of the women in the world for Harry to fall in love with, she picked a good one.”

Louis feels her eyes welling up a little as she gives Zayn a small smile. “C’mon, give us a cuddle then.”

Zayn wraps her arms around Louis in a tight hug. Louis feels Zayn’s lips press against the side of her head briefly and she can’t help but smile at the action. She’s so happy that she has such wonderful people in her life. And that they’re going to be sticking around for a very long time. 

“Alright, I’d better go,” Zayn says as she pulls back. “We’ll see you in Amsterdam for Pride.”

Louis nods, tucking a stray strand of hair behind her ear. “See you then.”

Zayn leans over and kisses Louis softly on the cheek before quickly leaving the room. Louis stays still for a few moments longer, taking a minute to herself before starting the packing again.

~*~

Even though Louis’ hand is starting to cramp at the angle it’s at, she isn’t stopping. Not when Harry’s breath is hot on her neck, her fingers curled tightly into Louis’ upper arm, literally clinging onto Louis as if for dear life.

“ _Fuck_ ,” Harry whimpers. Her body shudders as she orgasms, slumping against the seat. Louis moves her hand, flexing her wet fingers. She rolls her wrist and reaches for the wipes she keeps in her handbag. 

“Fuck that was good,” Harry says breathily, a hint of laughter in her voice.

“Yeah, it was,” Louis agrees with a grin. She glances over at Harry, who still has her eyes closed, her chest rising and falling as she tries to get her breathing back under control. Her skin sheens with sweat, making her look even more gorgeous than she already is, Louis thinks. She finishes wiping her hands and throws the used wipe in the paper bag of rubbish that is on the floor between them.

“I’m so glad you went first,” Harry mumbles, her eyes fluttering open ever so slightly. “I’m absolutely useless after orgasms.”

Louis laughs. “I know, love,” she says. She leans over and kisses Harry soundly on the lips, enjoying the way Harry follows her when she pulls back. “And now we’ve happily renewed our membership to the mile high club.”

Harry grins, shaking her head. “Yes, we did.” She stretches in her seat, the movement making her shirt ride up her stomach. 

“Maybe we can do it again on the next flight,” Louis comments, already thinking of getting Harry to their next hotel and spreading her out on the bed the moment she can.

“If we fly privately for the rest of our lives, we can have sex on _every_ aeroplane we’re on,” Harry replies. She wriggles in her seat and makes a face. “I’ll be right back, I need to get out of these knickers.”

“Take your time, love.”

Harry gets up and instead of moving straight away, she looks over her shoulder at their empty cabin and gives Louis a cheeky grin. She slips her hands under her skirt and a second later, she’s stepping out of her knickers. She plops them down on Louis’ lap and gives her a wink before heading towards the back of the plane where the toilet is.

Louis shakes her head, stuffing Harry’s underwear into the rubbish bag, too. They’re ruined and Louis doesn’t fancy doing a load of washing the second they get to their hotel.

Soon, they’re pulling into their hotel. Louis had booked them as close to the Reguliersdwarsstraat as she could. She knew that it was the most famous gay street in all of Amsterdam, and would undoubtedly be full of life for Pride. She was beyond excited to attend her first ever international Pride parade. 

Niall and Zayn will be arriving later in the evening, which she is looking forward to. She feels like she didn’t really get to spend a lot of time with them when they were in Barcelona. Niall was obviously going through some things, and with the arrival of Zayn’s family, Louis didn’t really get to see her much, either. But this part of the holiday is just for them and Louis is looking forward to it. She knew Harry is the same – excited to see her two best friends and spend some much needed time with _just_ them. And the best part is that they will get to go to a Pride parade, too.

The first Pride parade Louis went to was when she was in university with Liam and Sophia. It was a time that Louis wasn’t ever going to forget in a hurry, but she hadn’t really been able to attend a proper parade since. Which made this weekend all the more special in her mind.

A long while after they’ve checked in and settled into their hotel room, Louis rummages through her suitcase for the perfect Pride outfit. She wants to be as bold as possible. It’s a weekend she never wants to forget.

“I got wigs!” Harry squeals excitedly, bursting back into their room. She has a bag in her hand and she shakes it in Louis’ direction. “I got a whole bunch. We have the same size head, right? Either way, there’s loads to choose from! I reckon Niall would love one of these, too.”

Harry upends the bag on the bed and an array of brightly coloured wigs fall out. She spreads them out so Louis can see. Louis feels like she has to blink and shield her eyes at their brightness, but she does love the bluey-green wig. She reaches for it and gives it a shake just to see the hair swishing. 

“Have fun while you were out, love?” Louis asks fondly. Harry grins at her. She leans over and kisses Louis briefly on the lips and picks up a neon pink wig.

“This one is mine,” she says. 

“Obviously,” Louis teases. She quickly pins her hair messily back on her head and she slips on the wig. It takes a few moments to adjust it so it sits properly on her head, but she finally gets it to stay still.

“What do you think?”

Harry looks up and gives Louis a curious look. “You’re not going to go with the red? It’s your signature colour.”

Louis shrugs. “I might change it up.”

Harry bites her lip and sets the wig in her hands down. She closes the gap between them and runs her hands down either side of the wig, smoothing it. “I love it.” She kisses Louis softly for a few brief seconds and pulls back. 

“I don’t know about this fringe, though,” Louis says. She ruffles the hair resting on her forehead and scrunches her nose. “It’s been years since I’ve had a fringe.”

“It looks good,” Harry says. “Here, we’ll ask the experts. Smile!” She points her phone in Louis’ direction and Louis grins as she hears the fake shutter sound. “I just sent that to Niall. Let her decide.”

Louis takes off the wig and shakes her own hair out before putting it up in a messy bun. Harry’s phone pings with a response and she nods at the screen.

“What does she say?”

“She says it suits you but she’d disappointed that you’re not going with the red.” She locks her phone and slips it back into her pocket, not making eye-contact with Louis at all.

Louis eyes Harry suspiciously. “Did she _really_ say that or did you say it for her?” She closes the gap between them again and quickly grabs Harry’s waist. 

“She did say that!” Harry protests. “You can ask her tonight.” She wriggles in Louis’ grasp as Louis pulls her flush against her chest. 

“Alright,” she says. “I believe you.”

“Good.” 

Whenever Harry pouts, it still makes Louis want to kiss her stupid. She lifts her chin and captures Harry’s lips in her own for a few long beats. When she feels Harry relax against her, she breaks the kiss. 

“Actually, I might wear this pink one,” she teases, picking up Harry’s wig. “It’s cute.”

Harry reaches for the wig and Louis just holds it out of the way. Harry pouts again. “ _Louis_.”

Louis grins and swoops in for another quick kiss. It distracts Harry enough that she drops her hand. “I’d never take something that you wanted, love.”

“I know,” Harry replies. “I still think you should wear the red one.” She gives Louis a pointed look and stuffs the wigs back into the bag she took them out of. 

Louis turns back to her suitcase and resumes trying to find what she wants to wear to Pride tomorrow. Eventually, she settles on an outfit that makes Harry kiss at her neck for five minutes, so she safely assumes that it’s a good choice. 

She knows she’s going to pick the red wig – it goes better with her outfit than the blue one does. Harry is unbearably smug when Louis tells her so.

~*~

The energy of Pride is indescribable.

Everything is a mass of rainbows and colours and people _everywhere_. 

“My feet are going to be killing by the end of this,” Louis comments, but she isn’t even sure that she’s heard. Not with the level of noise that is coming from the street already. 

Niall and Zayn had got in late in the evening before, and had gone straight to bed. Louis doesn’t blame them, they must be exhausted. They have suites on the same floor, which Louis had booked purposefully for them. They all wanted to be close in proximity without being in each other’s pockets. 

That morning had been a flurry of getting ready, putting on wigs and clothes that they would undoubtedly regret wearing before the day was half over. Thankfully, everything was in relatively close distance, so if it became a necessity, they could pop back to their hotel to change. 

Louis had spent ages pinning her hair back and the wig on in place so it wouldn’t slip around on her head. And she had spent even longer helping Harry into her pink one. All four of them had the same style and cut of wig, something that Harry had wanted for them – to match in some small way. Louis doesn’t mind the shorter hair, but the fringe is still annoying. Having a bob-like hair piece is definitely worth it for today, she thinks, as it’s already warming up with the amount of people packed into the streets. 

“C’mon, over here,” Niall says. She waves her hand, leading them into another throng of people. 

The entire day is better than Louis expected it to be. Everyone she bumps into are so happy and full of pride for themselves and the people around them. It’s such an amazing atmosphere to be in.

They get a great spot on the canal for the pride parade, the four of them in one little rocking boat. Later, when Pride is over and they’re just enjoying their holiday, Louis is going to take Harry for a ride along the canal. It’s been one of the top items on her agenda since planning to come to Amsterdam.

“It’s starting!” Niall exclaims happily. She has the bisexual pride flag colours painted on her cheek. It clashes spectacularly with her neon yellow wig, but she’s glowing with happiness. Louis thinks it suits her perfectly. 

Zayn matches Niall – one of her cheeks painted with the pansexual pride flag colours too, perfect stripes down her cheek just like Niall’s are. Strangely enough, Zayn pulls it off. Because she makes everything look phenomenal – _even_ the horrifically neon green wig that she’s wearing. 

They cheer along with the people surrounding them at all of the floats in the parade, and wave at the people on them. It’s fun and easy. Harry stuffs a bunch of confetti into her handbag when the confetti canons go off. She just shrugs when Louis gives her a strange look. But she gets it, she wants to keep mementos from this day, too. 

After the parade is over, they take to the streets, passing by more and more rainbows than Louis has ever seen in her life. She buys a Pride shirt for herself and for Harry, knowing that she’ll love it. 

By the time they find somewhere to sit and eat, Louis is exhausted. Her feet are aching from being on them for so long, and in the boots she’s wearing. The boots had been worth it to see Harry’s face light up – black knee high boots with a thick heel that would help her see over taller people. There was some sort of method in her madness when she chose them. Along with the black leather shorts she’s wearing, too. When she put them on this morning, they clung to her arse in all the right places. But now that she’s hot and sweaty, they’re just uncomfortable.

She sits down next to Harry at the table that Niall has managed to secure and she leans her head on Harry’s shoulder.

“Tired, angel?” Harry asks.

“ _So_ tired,” Louis mumbles. “I don’t know how I’m going to keep up with you three for the rest of the night.”

“There’s probably someone selling uppers if you want?” 

Louis blinks at Niall’s brazen suggestion. “Er,” she begins, “no thank you.”

Niall shrugs. “The offer is there. I’m sure I can find someone.”

“I’ll just get an energy drink later,” Louis replies. 

Zayn appears a moment later with all of their food. She sets down burgers and a tray of drinks and Louis’ hands shoot out to grab the first burger she can reach. She peels back the wrapper and takes a large bite, sighing in relief as the warmth fills her mouth.

“I love you, Zayn,” Louis says around her mouthful of food.

Zayn laughs and puts her straw in her drink. “Love you too, mate.”

They eat their food, Niall and Harry’s chatter filling the space around them. Louis is far too focused on eating to participate in the conversation. She just wants to eat and go to sleep. But it’s getting later and there’s a massive outdoor concert that is starting soon that they all want to go to.

“We should do some selfies before we move,” Harry says. “Gather around, everyone.”

Since she has the longest arms, it’s easier for Harry to take the selfies. Louis wipes at her face with a paper napkin, hoping that she doesn’t have food stuck anywhere, or in her teeth. She grins at Harry’s phone, pressing in close to her fiancée. Zayn and Niall are crowded on her other side, their prideful coloured faces showing clearly. 

“ _That_ one is definitely going on Instagram!” Harry exclaims as she flicks through. She chooses the one where Niall and Zayn are kissing behind her and immediately uploads it. 

Louis smiles and kisses the side of Harry’s neck. She wraps her arms around Harry’s middle and cuddles her close. “Any chance of me tempting you to go back to the hotel with me and sleep?”

Harry turns in Louis’ embrace. “There’s every chance,” she begins, “but I know you. You’ll regret not going out tonight if we stay in.”

With a sigh, Louis drops her forehead onto Harry’s shoulder. “You’re right.”

“Of course I am,” she says smugly. “C’mon, let’s get some energy drinks and get dancing!”

One energy drink later, Louis feels a little less like she’s going to pass out from exhaustion. She checks her phone and sees that it isn’t even that late yet, and feels ridiculously old for just wanting to have a bath and go to bed. 

She shoots her mum a text message to say that they’re having fun in Amsterdam and smiles when she gets an immediate response back. She sends her mum the selfie Harry posted to her Instagram account and puts her phone back away in her handbag, slinging the long strap diagonally over her body.

“C’mon, Louis, let’s dance!” Niall says, grabbing Louis’ hands. She laughs as Niall tugs her along, putting them right in the throng of people.

Bodies press all around them. People are waving pride flags, dancing, cheering, and having the time of their lives by the sounds of it. Soon, Louis loses herself in the feeling of dancing with her friends and her fiancée. She snaps a few photos of the three girls when they’re not looking, thankful to have some mementos of her own. She stuffs her phone back into her bag and throws her arms around Harry.

Harry beams at her and pulls Louis in for a long kiss. She can hear Niall and Zayn cheering next to her, but what surprises her is other people in the crowd cheering them on, too. 

“I love you,” Louis yells to Harry over the deafening music. 

Harry’s mouth moves, repeating the words back to Louis that she can’t really hear. 

She dances with Niall and Zayn, laughing when Niall gives her a sloppy cheek kiss. Their cheeks press together as Niall takes a selfie, their bright wigs clashing tremendously. 

Every single moment is one that Louis never wants to forget.

~*~

Sunday is spent mostly in bed.

Louis bitches about her sore feet for five minutes before Harry throws a glare her way and pulls Louis’ feet into her lap, massaging them. Louis rewards her with mind-blowing sex. 

Niall and Zayn wander into their hotel room and make themselves at home on one of the sofas. They order in room service and spend the evening watching _Brooklyn Nine-Nine_.

“Hey! I just found an awesome song about girls liking girls!” Harry exclaims. 

It’s late-ish and Louis has been feeling sleepier and sleepier with every passing moment. She’s sure that she’s going to fall asleep on Niall’s shoulder if given half a chance.

Harry fiddles with something and the television starts playing the YouTube clip that Harry found. 

They all settle back to watch the music video for a song that Louis has never heard before. 

“Ooh, this has a bit of a nineties vibe to it, doesn’t it?” Harry says as the girl on the bicycle rides down the street.

“Shh, let us watch the song!” Niall hisses. 

“That was alright,” Zayn says when the song finishes five minutes later. 

Harry is tapping away at her phone and grinning at the screen. “Just downloaded it. That is such a good song!” She presses play and bops her head, trying to sing along. Mostly she just gets the “girls like girls like boys do” part and that’s it. It makes Louis smile.

“I loved that girl’s choker! I want one!” Harry exclaims. “I wonder if I can find anything like that while we’re here.”

“Probably,” Zayn says. “You just need to keep an eye out.”

Harry smiles and glances back down at her phone.

“Followed Hayley on social media,” Niall says. “That’s a _bop_.”

Zayn nods and slings her arm around Niall’s shoulders. “No one is stealing kisses from my missus, though.”

“I don’t know about that!” Louis says. She launchers herself at Niall and peppers her head with kisses. Niall laughs and bats Louis away but Louis isn’t having any of it. 

Harry piles on them next, squashing all of them onto the one sofa. “I love you all.”

“I’d love you all more if you got off me,” Niall groans, shoving at all of them. 

Louis laughs as she and Harry fall to the soft carpeted floor and she sits up, resting her chin on Niall’s knee. 

“That’s definitely the theme song for this weekend,” Zayn says. “I really like that.”

“Me too,” Harry says fondly. 

Louis reaches out and laces her fingers with Harry’s. “Me too.”

“Alright,” Niall says. “I’m gonna go to bed. I’m knackered. See you for brunch?”

Harry and Louis nod. Zayn gets up and stretches, sighing as she does. 

“C’mon, babes,” she says, taking Niall’s hand in her own. “See you tomorrow.”

With a groan, Louis gets up off the floor and Harry plays the song again. She makes her way to the bathroom to have a quick shower and brush her teeth before climbing into bed. The song is playing on a loop until Harry climbs into bed next to Louis. She turns it off after the last repeat and snuggles into Louis’ side.

“I didn’t like the boy in that music video,” Harry whispers, tracing her finger down Louis’ bare arm. “I get scared when men yell like that.”

Louis captures Harry’s hand in her own, holding it. “Yeah, me too. I always feel like someone’s going to get hurt when guys yell.”

Harry breathes out a sigh. “I thought it was only me.”

With a shake of her head, Louis shifts and settles against the pillows a little better. She opens her arms for Harry to snuggle into and she holds her fiancée close. She strokes over Harry’s soft curls and hums out the tune to the song. She can feel Harry smiling against her shoulder and she turns her head, giving Harry an awkward kiss.

“I’m glad the girls got together in the end,” Harry whispers. “They deserve love and happiness.”

It’s that last thought that plays through Louis’ head as she falls asleep.

~*~

Little Collins is somewhere that Zayn had suggested they go. Louis is immediately grateful for the suggestion the moment she has a bite of her food. It tastes absolutely phenomenal, she thinks. Everything is presented beautifully, too, which causes both Harry and Niall to take quick photos of their meals before they eat.

“I can’t believe you got a pink iced tea,” Niall comments as Harry picks up her drink to take a sip. “That’s so you.”

Harry grins and sets her glass down. “It’s hibiscus. And it tastes pretty delicious, too.”

Without asking, Niall reaches across and takes a sip of Harry’s drink. “You’re not wrong.”

Harry preens at the comment. Louis can’t help but smile fondly at her. Her own food is gone too quickly for her liking, so Louis orders some more, and a pink iced tea for each of them too. 

Once she feels sated enough, Louis sits back in her chair and sips at her drink, enjoying the coolness of it. She nudges Zayn’s foot under the table and gives her a smile.

“What are you both up to today?” she asks.

“We’re going to take a boat ride across the canals,” Zayn says. “Then we’re probably just going to go to the cinema later. There’s some movies that have come out this summer that we both want to see.”

“That sounds nice,” Louis replies. 

“What about you?” Zayn asks.

“We’re going to stick around here in de Pijp,” Louis says. “There are some really nice vintage shops that I’m dying to look at.”

Zayn nods and wipes her fingers on a paper napkin. “Want to do some shopping before our boat ride?” she asks Niall. 

“Alright,” Niall replies. “I need some new knickers.”

Louis grins. “I’m sure we’ll be able to find something for you.”

After brunch, Louis follows Harry and Niall, who have taken lead, their arms looped together as they walk down the street. She keeps a steadier pace with Zayn, stopping every so often to look at something that they pass by.

“Look at that jacket!” Zayn says as she stops in front of a display window. “I hope it’s my size.”

She enters the shop without waiting and Louis calls out to Niall and Harry that she’s following Zayn into the shop. She opens the door and wanders around, peering at the racks of clothes. She has no idea how Niall and Harry missed this shop – it’s right up both of their allies. 

“It fits!” Zayn exclaims. She pushes her hair out of her eyes and does a twirl. Louis can’t help but grin.

“That looks _ace_ on you.”

“Ace, hey?” Zayn teases.

Louis shrugs. “Get it.”

Zayn looks at her reflection again and grins. She can’t stop smiling and it makes Louis feel warm and happy inside that she gets to witness this. 

“Yeah,” she says with a nod. “I love it.”

Louis grins. “It really suits you.” 

“I’ve been dying for a new leather jacket. My old one is falling apart at the seams. Comfy as hell, though, but I don’t think I can have it cleaned again without it falling apart completely.”

“That is a woe that I understand far too well,” Louis says. “I had these jeans at uni that made my arse look _sensational_ and I wore them to death. Literally. I kept a piece of the fabric because I couldn’t bear to part with them completely.”

“Sap,” Zayn teases. But the look on her face says she knows _exactly_ what Louis is talking about.

Zayn slings the leather jacket over her arm, and Louis catches her surreptitiously caressing the sleeve. She hides her smile and turns to give Zayn some privacy. 

“These are cute!” Harry’s voice exclaims from somewhere around the shop. 

Louis makes her way over to where Harry and Niall are, Zayn following right behind her. Harry is holding up a pair of gorgeous looking shoes that just scream _Harry_.

“They are,” Louis agrees. 

“I found this awesome shirt,” Niall says, appearing seemingly out of nowhere. “I love it.”

Louis grins, glad that they’ve all found something.

“What about you, Lou? Have you found anything you like?” Harry asks, adding the shoes to the growing pile of stuff that she’s gathered. 

Louis shakes her head. “Not yet. I might have a look over there.” She nods towards another section of the store. 

She browses through the racks of clothes, taking in everything that this shop has to offer. She spots a red leather jacket that is soft to the touch, buried towards the back of the store. She’s not surprised when she sees the price, but she shrugs it on over her shirt anyway. She looks down at herself, trying to see what the jacket looks like on, and then around for a mirror to look at herself in. 

“That looks good,” Niall says from behind her. 

“Thanks.”

“You definitely should get it.”

Louis grins. “I will.”

They leave the shop laden down with more bags than Louis anticipated. She offers to take Niall and Zayn’s bags, too, so they can go on their boat ride without having to worry about their purchases. 

Harry and Louis return to the hotel with their belongings, and Louis grins as she sets aside a bag that she had kept hidden from Harry. She can’t wait to see Harry’s expression when she gives her the gift she got. It’s just a handbag, but it’s pink and pretty and everything that Harry loves, so Louis hopes that she’ll like it.

“What should we do this afternoon?” Harry asks as she wanders back into the bedroom. 

“Anything you want, love,” Louis says. She discretely nudges the bag towards the bedside drawers with her foot, hoping that Harry doesn’t notice the movement.

“I want to take a bath with you and then watch _Legally Blonde_.”

Louis smiles. “Then we’ll do that.”

Harry beams at her and closes the gap between them, kissing Louis soundly on the lips. 

“And then tomorrow, maybe we can go out clubbing?”

Louis nods. “I’ve got the perfect outfit in mind for you.”

Harry’s eyes twinkle with anticipation.

~*~

Harry’s tongue darts out to lick her lips.

“Are you sure?” Louis asks again.

Harry nods. “Yeah.” Her pupils have gone darker and she keeps biting her lip, a clear indication to Louis that she’s turned on just thinking about it. 

“Alright, here you go then.” 

Louis hands over the underwear and the vibrator that goes with it. She’d had the idea while they were at Pride – to get Harry some kind of vibrating knickers. She knew that Harry would love the idea, and would jump at the chance for a bit of exhibitionism without doing _too_ much, especially when they were in a foreign country. 

It was the best of both worlds. Harry could probably get away with having at least one orgasm in public without anyone knowing, and Louis would get to be the one to control the remote to give her that orgasm. And she planned to do it tonight while they were out dancing. 

Harry fits the vibrator into the secret pocket in the knickers lining and she jostles the fabric, probably to make sure that it doesn’t fall out. 

“Let’s get ready then,” Louis says. Harry nods and strips completely. She steps into the knickers and pulls them up so they sit properly on her body. 

With a cheeky grin, Louis grabs the remote and turns it on to the lowest setting. 

Harry immediately squeaks and her knees give way. She collapses onto the bed, clenching her legs together. “Oh my god!”

Louis turns the vibrator off. “Good?”

Harry pants, her chest rising and falling as she struggles to catch her breath. “ _Yes_ ,” she says emphatically. “Holy shit that’s good.” She runs her hand over her face and laughs. “Why didn’t we get these earlier?”

“We had to leave _something_ as a surprise.”

Louis climbs up on the bed next to Harry and runs a hand down her bare torso, circling her nipples before travelling down to the underwear. She cups her hand over the knickers, feeling for the small, hard lump that is the vibrator. She presses _just_ so and Harry’s eyes flutter closed, her lips parting on an exhale.

She lowers her head and gives Harry a long, heated kiss that leaves Harry panting and scrabbling after Louis as she pulls back. 

“C’mon, we need to get ready if we’re going to go out and have some fun.”

Harry pouts at Louis and Louis presses one more kiss to her lips before moving off the bed completely. 

After Harry had played the _Girls Like Girls_ song on repeat for most of the day after discovering it, she found a few other songs that had girls kissing girls in the music videos thanks to the suggestions that popped up on her YouTube feed. One of the videos was by Halsey for her song, _Ghost_ , which Louis immediately liked. 

The inspiration for her outfit and wig of choice came from that music video. When Louis had told Harry earlier in the day, Harry was immediately on board, claiming that she had been dying to wear the pastel pink wig that she got before Pride but didn’t know when she would be able to wear it.

Which is why Louis is, once again, pinning her hair down so she can wear the blue-green wig to go out in. She has to admit, the photos they took at Pride with their awesome bright wigs looked _amazing_. She loves that just changing one thing about her look makes her feel like an entire new person. And tonight, she and Harry are going out to a club to dance and be silly and to pretend that Harry isn’t wearing a vibrator in her knickers that Louis is going to control whenever she feels like.

It’s just as thrilling for Louis as it is for Harry. She knows the sex that they have tonight when they get in is going to be exceptional and she _can’t wait_. 

Louis finishes getting ready before Harry does, so she takes some selfies via Snapchat to send to Zayn and Niall, who aren’t coming out with them tonight. Niall immediately sends her a Snapchat back with her approval. 

The blue of the wig really makes Louis’ face look completely different, she thinks as she looks over the selfies she took and saved. She takes a nice one to send to her mum and then she sends it to Lottie, too. Then Eleanor because she hasn’t messaged her in a few days. Eleanor responds before Lottie or her mum do, sending her loves and hopes that Louis and Harry have a good night out. 

Harry appears a few moments later, looking like an absolute vision. She managed to find a choker necklace like the one in the _Girls Like Girls_ music video, which she was ecstatic about. The one that Louis is wearing is a bit thicker and is the same pastel pink of Harry’s wig. 

“ _Fuck_ you look good,” Harry says. She closes the distance between them and reaches out for Louis, only to hover her hands close to Louis’ body without touching her. “If I touch you now, I won’t stop and we’ve got plans.”

Louis grins. “I know the feeling, love.” She rakes her gaze over Harry’s outfit, taking in the tight black skirt, the lack of bra, and the skimpy Pride tank top she’s wearing. She looks like a wet dream come to life, Louis decides.

“Alright, let’s take some selfies before we leave,” Harry says, pulling out her phone. “I want to get some decent photos of how cute we look before the sweat undoubtedly ruins all of my hard work.”

Louis gives Harry the fondest look and she presses in close, making the same faces at the camera that Harry is. She turns at the same time that Harry does and they kiss lightly, not enough to smudge Harry’s lipstick, but enough that the photo definitely shows that their lips are touching. 

“I’m definitely uploading that one!” Harry says happily as she looks over the photos again. “And it’s now my new phone background, too.”

“I love it,” Louis comments over Harry’s shoulder. She noses at the bare skin, trying to keep her lips off Harry lest she be unable to stop and ruin all of their plans for the evening. 

Louis’ phone pings with a notification and she picks it up to see that Harry has made a new post to Instagram. She smiles as she looks at the photo they just took, captioned with _I’m real and I don’t feel like boys – Hayley Kiyoko_ with a couple of music symbol emojis added at the end. It makes her heart so happy knowing that Harry is proud of them and their love, and wants to show it to the world. 

Louis locks her phone and slides it into her handbag. She double checks to make sure that she has the vibrator’s remote in her handbag, and some money. She gives herself a once over in the nearest mirror before heading for the door, Harry right behind her. 

The club they’re going to isn’t too far from their hotel, thankfully, so the walk there is nice. The night air is cooler than the day had been, which is refreshing. Louis swings their joined hands between them and can’t stop smiling when Harry laughs at the action.

They enter the club pretty quickly and Louis leads Harry to the bar so they can get a cocktail each. There are already plenty of people dancing, grinding up against each other in very provocative ways. 

“Let’s dance!” Harry says as they finish their drinks. Louis lets Harry lead them onto the dance floor, her arms in the air and twirling on the spot. 

She’s an absolute vision, Louis thinks. She loses herself in the music and the closeness of Harry. The world seems to fade away around them. The loud, heavy music, and the bright, flashing lights shining only for them. 

Louis slings her arm low around Harry’s waist, grazing her hand up Harry’s back just to see her shudder at the touch. Harry’s eyes are closed, and she’s completely lost in the moment. Louis takes the opportunity to reach into her handbag and turn the remote onto the lowest setting.

Harry’s eyes snap open and stumbles into Louis’ waiting grasp. 

“ _Holy fuck_ ,” she whisper-yells in Louis’ ear. “God that feels so good!”

Louis grins and closes her handbag tightly. Harry turns in Louis’ arms, pressing her arse right up against Louis and grinding back into her. She isn’t moving to the beat of the music anymore, but to the pulse of the vibrator, Louis realises. It takes all of her strength to not turn the vibrator up onto a higher setting just to see what reaction she’d get out of Harry.

The pastel colour of Harry’s wig reflects the flashing lights, making it change colours as the lights go over them. Louis wishes that she could capture the moment to show Harry later. But she’s too wrapped up in Harry’s body moving against hers to break the spell they’re under.

Her hands slide up over Harry’s stomach, inching higher and higher. She drops her hands before they get too close to Harry’s breasts. She grips onto Harry’s hips, fingers digging in _ever_ so slightly. She can hear Harry whimper above the music and she reaches into her handbag to turn the vibrator off.

Harry spins in her arms and levels Louis with a glare. Louis just shrugs and grins and leans forwards, kissing Harry soundly on the lips. She turns in Harry’s arms and presses her arse against Harry this time, grinding back on her. Harry seems to like the change in positions if the way she grabs onto Louis is an indicator. 

They stop after a while to head to the bar and get another drink. Louis leans against the sticky bar top and watches as Harry sips her pink drink, her head bobbing to the music. She surreptitiously reaches into her handbag and turns the vibrator on again. Harry yelps and her hips jerk forwards, causing her to spill her drink a little onto the floor.

“I’ll get you a new one,” Louis tells her when Harry glares at her again.

She flags down one of the workers behind the bar and orders Harry another drink. Harry chews on the cherry from her spilled drink before setting down the empty glass and accepting her new one. Louis can’t wait to kiss her and taste that sticky mess on her tongue.

After Harry has finished her drink, they head back out onto the dance floor and immediately wrap themselves around each other. They get bumped into by a few other dancers, but no one seems to care that Louis and Harry seem to be completely in a world of their own. 

Louis pulls Harry flush against her and kisses her hotly. She moans into the kiss, tasting the drink in Harry’s mouth still. Harry clutches Louis’ shirt tightly and tries to get closer than she already is.

“Turn it up!” Harry says. Louis can see the desperation in her eyes. She reaches into her handbag once more and turns the vibrator onto the third setting. Harry’s eyes widen dramatically and Louis barely closes her bag back over before Harry’s lips are crashing into hers. 

They’re pressed close together, kissing hotly. If Louis concentrates enough, she swears she can feel the vibrator making Harry’s body shake, but she knows that it’s just the bass of the music. 

She feels Harry whimper against her mouth and she breaks the kiss, burying her face in Louis’ neck. Her breath makes Louis’ skin damp and her hands clench tighter into the sides of Louis’ shirt. Her body goes rigid as she orgasms right there in the middle of the dance floor, surrounded by at least one hundred people. And yet no one is any the wiser. 

Louis turns the vibrator off and Harry all but sags against her. She tilts Harry’s chin and kisses her sweetly.

“You were amazing, princess,” she says right in Harry’s ear. Harry gives her a dopey grin and kisses Louis back properly.

They make their way to the toilets where there’s a line of girls waiting to go in. Louis sighs and joins the back of the line.

“Can I eat you out, Lou?” Harry says, nipping at Louis’ ear lobe. Her teeth tug briefly before letting go. The girl in front of them gives them an awkward look over her shoulder before shuffling forwards.

Louis bites back a laugh. “I’d love you to,” she tells Harry, “but later, alright?” Harry whines, but doesn’t protest any more. 

It takes time, but eventually they get into the toilets. Louis steps into the cubicle with Harry and ignores the groans of annoyance that follow them. She locks the door and Harry hikes up her skirt as best as she can before reaching into her underwear to take the vibrator out. She passes it to Louis before squatting over the toilet to have a wee. Louis rolls her eyes fondly at the action.

After they finish up in the toilets, Louis leads them back to the bar where she orders them a couple of shots each, and another cocktail. The way Harry’s face lights up when the pink drink is slid towards her is absolutely worth it, Louis thinks. 

They head back to the dance floor, and are just as wrapped up in each other as they were earlier on. Louis’ skin prickles with sweat, and her heart thuds in her chest to the beat of the bass. She drapes an arm over Harry’s shoulder and presses even closer to her than she already is. She cups the back of Harry’s wig-clad head and pulls her in for a long, heated kiss. Her entire body tingles at the touch. She pulls back after a few long moments to see Harry’s glassy-eyed expression. She’ll never tire of seeing that look on Harry. 

It’s a ridiculous time in the morning when they eventually leave the club, Harry still riding the high of her public orgasm, and the few alcoholic drinks she had. They stumble out into the street, keeping each other upright. 

The cool, fresh air feels like heaven on Louis’ face and she takes deep, greedy lungfuls of it. 

“I want a burger,” Harry says as they stand there, in the middle of the empty street. “Let’s go get food.”

They find somewhere that is open and stumble into the bright, harshly lit place. The wait for food isn’t too long, which they’re both grateful for as they sit down to eat their burgers, their feet pressed together under the table. Harry’s wig is in a disarray, strands sticking out everywhere. Louis reaches out a hand to smooth them down when Harry grabs her hand and kisses the palm. 

“I had fun tonight,” she says. “A _lot_ of fun.”

“Me too,” Louis agrees. She shifts so their knees are pressing together under the small table. “I can’t wait to get back to our hotel and have some _more_ fun.”

Harry grins at her. She swipes a chip through some ketchup and pops it into her mouth. They finish their food and Louis clears away their rubbish before they head for the exit. Just at the doors, she stops and fixes the stray hairs of Harry’s wig. She gives her a loving smile and kisses her softly on the lips, unable to stop herself.

“What was that for?” Harry asks.

“Just because I love you,” Louis replies. “C’mon, let’s go. There’s a bed with our names on it back at the hotel and my feet are starting to hurt.”

“Such a baby,” Harry teases as they exit the restaurant and back out into the night. 

They round a corner and Louis giggles as she stumbles over her own two feet, clearly a little tipsier than she thought she was.

A voice exclaims something in Dutch that startles Louis. It’s dark so she doesn’t see who it is at first, but she sees them the second time they speak. 

“Watch where you’re going!” the voice says, but this time in English. 

Louis blinks and looks down at the ground where someone is clearly trying to sleep. Someone that she just tripped over. 

Immediately, Louis feels sober. 

“I’m so sorry!” she says, “are you alright?”

“I will be when you stop kicking me in my sleep!” 

In all of her years alive, Louis has never felt so stumped on what to say to someone. She’s interacted with homeless people before. Unfortunately, there are a lot of homeless people in London, and it breaks her heart every time she sees someone sleeping on the streets. The heart break comes back fresh as ever at the sight of what seems to be someone around Harry’s age lying in a beat up sleeping bag.

“Are you alright?” Louis asks again.

“Just leave me alone,” the person grumbles, tugging their sleeping bag up higher.

Louis can barely see that it’s a girl in the sleeping bag, her dark hair obscuring a large portion of her face. The sleeping bag doesn’t help Louis, either. 

The girl sighs and lifts her head, pushing her hair out of her eyes. “Fifty Euros.” 

Louis blinks, confused. “Sorry?” 

“I give head but it comes at a price. A three-way will cost you more.”

Louis physically steps back. “I’m not asking for sex,” she says, hoping that she sounds sincere. “I just want to know if you want some food. My fiancée and I just had some burgers, I’m more than happy to go back in and get you something to eat if you like?”

Silence meets her question.

“I’m Harry. What’s your name?”

“Eve.”

“It’s nice to meet you, Eve,” Harry says. “Do you like cheeseburgers?”

Eve nods. “Uh, yeah, they’re… yes.”

Louis looks between Harry and Eve and nods. “I’ll be right back.”

She hesitates for a moment before leaving Harry with Eve. She can hear them chatting as she walks back into the fast food restaurant and she orders more food. She gets as much as she can physically carry, along with three cups of tea. 

Her mind races with what has just happened. It seemed so easy for Eve to offer up sex for payment of some kind. She knows the kinds of people that ask for sex from homeless people and she doesn’t want to think about that for too long. 

Questions upon questions spring to Louis’ mind, and it takes all of her strength to swallow them down. She doesn’t think Eve would appreciate sharing her story to two random strangers who tripped over her on the street. 

The order doesn’t take long to be made and soon she’s heading back outside to where she left Harry and Eve. She finds Harry sitting on the pavement near Eve’s sleeping bag and she can hear Eve’s voice. It’s softer now that she isn’t defending herself or offering herself up for sex, which Louis is thankful for. But that might have something to do with Harry, too, she thinks. Harry tends to bring out the best in people. It’s one of the reasons that Louis loves her so much. 

“I got you a cup of tea, too,” Louis says. She lowers herself on the ground and passes Eve the paper bag with the burgers and sets the cardboard tray down on the ground too. She passes a cup to Harry who gives her a grateful smile. 

“Thank you,” Eve says. She digs into the bag and immediately unwraps a burger. “I haven’t eaten in two days.” 

It pangs Louis to hear that.

“I’m Louis, by the way,” she says, clutching her tea in both hands. “Harry and I are visiting your lovely city as a part of our engagement holiday.”

“It’s like a honeymoon but for the newly engaged,” Harry adds with a smile. “We attended Pride on Saturday. Have you ever been?”

Eve shakes her head, a bit of lettuce flying out of her mouth at the motion. “No. I had planned to go this year with some friends from school.”

“Maybe you’ll be able to go next year?” Harry offers, fiddling with her paper cup.

Eve snorts. “If I’m alive.”

Louis’ heart aches at the statement. Eve seems so sure that it’s true and it makes Louis so sad. “May I ask why you’re out here?”

Eve looks at Louis, then glances at Harry and shrugs. “My parents kicked me out for being a lesbian.”

Louis’ blood boils in her veins. “There are a lot of things I want to say to that,” she begins slowly. “I’m _very_ sorry you were kicked out.”

Eve shrugs. “I crashed on a few friends’ couches, but after a while, my money ran out. I got fired from work for not showing up. And here I am.”

“Is there anyone you’d like to call?” Louis asks while Eve keeps eating. She sips at her own tea, letting it warm her insides. It isn’t soothing her like tea usually does, but Louis isn’t expecting it to.

Eve shakes her head. “Nah. I’ve got no one.”

Harry is uncharacteristically silent. Louis looks over at her and meets her gaze. They have a silent conversation just with their eyes. Louis nods and Harry gives her a loving smile.

“We’re lesbians, too,” Harry says, gesturing to her Pride shirt. “In case that wasn’t obvious.”

“It’s obvious,” Eve replies. 

Louis can’t help but smile. “We do kind of advertise it, don’t we?”

Eve glances between them both and shrugs. She reaches into the bag for the second burger, immediately unwrapping it and taking a bite.

“We’re in a hotel not too far from here,” she starts. “Would you like to come and stay with us for the night?”

Eve pauses, the burger half way to her mouth. “I thought you didn’t want sex?”

“Oh!” Louis exclaims. “I… No. Not sex. I’ll get you your own room. No one should have to sleep outside.”

“Unless they’re camping,” Harry adds. 

Louis nods in Harry’s direction, her gaze still on Eve. “What she said.”

“Why are you doing this?” Eve asks. “Are you doing this for karma or something?”

“No,” Louis says, shaking her head. “I just want to help. And if that means giving you a room in a hotel with a shower and a soft bed, then I’ll do it.”

Eve stares at her for a few long moments. “Alright,” she agrees, her tone wary. 

Louis lifts her cup to her lips and takes a long sip. Her mind is still racing, and she wants nothing more than to fix all of Eve’s problems for her, but she knows that it isn’t possible. She doesn’t even know if Eve wants her help, but the least she can do is start with a shower and a bed. She has no idea how long Eve has been homeless, or what facilities are around Amsterdam for homeless people, but from the look of the haunted expression on Eve’s face, she clearly hasn’t slept in a proper bed for a long time now.

Eve and Harry keep talking while Louis fiddles with her phone. She gets up and wanders a few feet away so she can call the hotel. They are able to get her a single room for the duration of the rest of her and Harry’s stay. Louis hopes that she’ll be able to find something more stable for Eve in that time frame.

Once Eve has finished eating, she and Harry gather her things and join Louis. 

“All set?” she asks. They both nod. “C’mon then, it’s late, and I think we all need to get some sleep.”

The concierge at the reception desk gives Louis an odd look when she accepts the hotel room key for Eve, but they stay silent, which Louis is grateful for. She leads them to the lifts and tells Eve what floor and room she’s in. She catches a glimpse of herself in the mirrored walls of the lift and is slightly startled. She had completely forgotten that she was wearing a blue wig and Harry a pastel pink one. That explains the odd looks that the concierge gave her, then. It makes her feel slightly better that it was more than likely because of how she looked, rather than the fact that they had Eve with them. 

“You must be rich,” Eve says as she looks in awe around the lift they’re in. “That must be nice.”

“I’ll help Eve get settled,” Harry says as the lift doors open. “I’ll see you in our room?”

Louis nods. Harry gives her a soft smile and quick kiss on the lips before stepping out into the corridor with Eve. She rides the lift the rest of the way up to her and Harry’s floor on her own, and steps out when the doors open. She hesitates in the hallway for a long moment before opening the locked door to her and Harry’s room.

The first thing she does is peel off the wig. It’s a bit sticky in places, and Louis’ nose crinkles. She’d rather not think about that at the moment. She puts it in an empty shopping bag to be washed later. Then wonders if wigs _can_ be washed. She figures they have to be able to as people wear them all of the time. 

The tiles are cold on her bare feet when Louis steps into the bathroom. She sighs, both enjoying and hating how cold they are. The shower is perfect, though. The water hot enough to make Louis feel like she’s actually scrubbing away the sweat and stench of other people from her skin. People in clubs tend to get too close for comfort, and while Louis enjoys it in the moment, later she just feels sweaty and gross. 

It feels like a lifetime ago that she and Harry were dancing in the club, not just a few hours. 

After her shower, Louis climbs onto the bed. She pulls her laptop close and opens a new browser window, her fingers flying across the keyboard. She is surprised to find out that there really aren’t that many homeless people in Amsterdam, according to the statistics. While that makes her feel better for a few moments, it also makes her sad because even one homeless person is too many in Louis’ mind. It makes her angry at Eve’s parents for kicking her out. 

Louis can’t help but think that this would’ve been Niall if she didn’t have the friends and support system that she did. She still gets angry when she thinks of what Bobby and Maura did to Niall.

The internet thankfully provides Louis with enough information that she can get Eve help quickly, and get her set up with one of the homeless shelters that she isn’t sure Eve knows about. She doesn’t even know how old Eve is, but she’s guessing that Eve wouldn’t have known about the shelters beforehand unless she’d actively asked about them. It tends to be that way with a lot of people. But Louis is more than willing to get Eve the help that she needs, and the help that she deserves.

It’s more than an hour later when Harry knocks on the door to be let in. She looks dead on her feet. Her wig is askew and Louis takes it off her head before she leads Harry into the bathroom so she can get clean. She hoists herself up to sit on the bathroom counter while Harry showers, kicking her feet just because she can.

“She’s _just_ turned sixteen,” Harry says as she shuts off the water. “She had a couple of older friends that she stayed with after her parents kicked her out, but nothing for the last month. She turned sixteen while we were in Barcelona.”

The door opens and Harry steps out, dripping wet. Louis grabs a towel and wraps it around Harry’s trembling body.

It doesn’t surprise her when Harry sags into Louis’ arms and starts to cry. She holds Harry close, pressing kisses into her wet hair. She just holds Harry, letting her cry it out. She cries too. Her heart hurts for Eve. For this terrible situation that she’s in. And for Harry whose heart is bigger than anyone else’s in the world – the same heart that has just been hurt by hearing what has happened to Eve.

“C’mon,” Louis whispers after a long while. “Let’s get you some water and into bed.”

She tucks Harry in, curling around her. She kisses Harry sweetly, letting her know that she’s here, that Harry is safe with her. She watches as Harry falls asleep and sighs, rubbing her eyes. 

The sun is starting to rise in the sky when Louis gets up and leaves the bedroom. She changed into some day clothes and has slung her handbag over her shoulder. She pulls out her phone, tapping away on the screen until she gets a number that she wants. She presses the button for the lift as the call connects. 

By the time Louis gets back to the hotel, it’s mid-morning. She hasn’t heard from the concierge, whom she asked to keep her updated if Eve left. She hopes that Eve is fast asleep still. 

Her phone buzzes in her hand as she steps into the lift. 

“ _Where are you_?” Harry asks, sounding worried. “ _Your note just says_ be back soon.” 

“I’m in the lift, love,” Louis replies. “I’ll be there in a moment.”

“ _Alright_.”

The call disconnects and a few moments later, Louis is sliding the room key into her door and pushing it open. Harry is sitting on the couch in the main room, her hair in a complete disarray. Louis feels momentarily bad that Harry went to bed with wet hair. She’s going to have a hard time getting the knots out of it. 

“Hi,” Louis greets her.

“What’s all this?” Harry asks, gesturing to the bags in Louis’ arms. “Did you get any sleep?”

Louis shakes her head. “I’ll sleep later.”

She catches Harry’s frown as she turns to set the bags down on the floor next to the couch. 

“Kissy,” Harry says. Louis grins and immediately turns her head to give Harry a kiss. She sighs against Harry’s lips, losing herself for a few moments before pulling back. 

“Alright,” Harry says, curling her legs up underneath her on the couch. “What have you been up to then?”

Louis loves that Harry knows her so well. “I called a few shelters, hung up on the Salvation Army – for a charity, they sure are fucking picky – then I got through to a shelter that’s closer by and spoke to a really lovely woman who said there’s a space for Eve for whenever she wants it. They’ve got social workers that come by and help people get set up with social welfare, which is a start. Since Eve is a kid, I’m not sure what will happen, but she might have to go into foster care until she’s eighteen.”

Harry nods. “The social worker will know all of that, won’t they?”

“Yeah,” Louis replies. “But until then, I wanted Eve to know that she can stay here in this hotel while we’re here. I’ve booked her room for that long, and…” she trails off. “You don’t mind that I’ve completely upended our entire holiday here, do you?”

“Of course not,” Harry says. She gets up and loops her arms around Louis’ middle. “I know the kind of woman you are, Louis. And I _love_ her. I know you won’t be able to sleep until you’ve got this all sorted, or some variation of sorted. I know that you _literally_ will not rest until there is a clear answer, or a road with a clear path that can be followed. You are the best person in the entire universe. And I love you.”

Louis’ body sags with relief. “I love you too.” Harry kisses her soundly on the lips. 

“So, what’s in the bags?”

“I made a few more phone calls and got some essentials,” Louis says. She picks up the first bag and pulls out a sturdy and functional backpack. “I noticed that Eve just had a plastic bag for her things, so I got this. And I got her some clothes, too. I guessed her size because she’s roughly the same size as Niall. So I hope that these clothes fit her.” 

She pulls things out as she goes, sorting them into piles. 

“And I got some sanitary products, too,” Louis says, opening another bag. “I got pads and tampons because I don’t know her preference. A toothbrush, some toothpaste, and a few other things. I just want Eve to have some dignity, you know?”

“I know, love. She’s lucky to have you, you’re an angel.”

Louis ducks her head and focuses on the things in front of her. 

“Have you had breakfast?” 

Harry yawns and stretches. “Not yet,” she says. “I just woke up before you got here.”

“Give Niall and Zayn a call, too, see if they want to come and join us for breakfast,” Louis says. “I’ll take this stuff to Eve and bring her up here, too.”

“Alright,” Harry agrees.

Louis gathers the things she purchased and grabs her phone, sliding it into her pocket. She hears Harry on the phone as she exits the hotel room, heading for the lifts once more.

She knocks on Eve’s door and only has to wait a few moments before it opens. 

“Hello,” Eve says with a yawn. She’s clearly just woken up, and Louis feels bad for a moment, but that quickly disappears when she sees how well rested Eve looks. 

Louis gives her a warm smile. “I got you some things. I hope you don’t mind?”

Eve lets Louis in. Louis looks around. The room is significantly smaller than the suite that she and Harry are in, but it feels cosy.

“How did you sleep?” Louis asks, setting the bags on the floor by the bed. 

“Better than I have in a long time,” Eve replies. She sits down on the bed and gives Louis an expectant look. 

“That’s wonderful. I made some calls,” Louis begins. “And I’ve made you an appointment with a social worker at one of the homeless shelters here. It’s not until this afternoon, so you don’t have to rush.”

Eve’s lips twitch. “You didn’t have to.”

“I wanted to,” Louis says. 

She tells Eve everything she has done that morning, and when she passes over the bags of clothes and essential items, Eve bursts into tears. There’s a moment of awkwardness before Louis closes the gap between them and hugs Eve. She lets Eve cry on her shoulder and smooths back her hair. 

“Why are you being so nice to me? You don’t even know me.”

“Because no one should go through what you’re going through,” Louis says simply. “You should’ve been told what options were available for you. But most of all, you should have _never_ been kicked out of home for being gay.”

Eve sobs harder, her hands clenching tightly in Louis’ clothes. 

Eventually, her crying subsides enough that she lets go of Louis’ shirt.

“C’mon, we’ve got breakfast up in our room, and some friends who want to meet you,” Louis says softly. 

“Thank you,” Eve says softly, sincerity lacing her words. 

It’s those two words that make Louis’ heart feel like it’s breaking in her chest.

~*~

While it doesn’t fix everything, Eve is able to stay at the shelter until she’s able to get accommodation on her own. Something that the social workers are able to help her with. It’s likely that she’ll have to share a flat with some other people to be able to make the rent, but it’s a start. It’s something tangible and real that Eve can focus on.

Mostly, Louis is thankful that there is help out there for Eve. 

The events of the last few days inspire Louis to open up a shelter for LGBTQIA plus teens. She never wants anything like what happened to Eve to happen to anyone else. She makes phone calls and gets everything started so by the time they get back to England, she’ll be able to work properly on it. She wants no LGBTQIA teen to ever experience homelessness because they were kicked out by their ignorant parents or family. 

What makes Louis even happier is how involved Harry is in it.

It derails the majority of their stay in Amsterdam, but Harry assures Louis time and time again that she doesn’t mind. She is all in, and when she tells Louis how proud she is of her, Louis feels it down to her toes.

She spends the next few days getting clothes, sanitary products, and other hygiene essentials organised to donate to the shelter that were able to help Eve just to say thank you. She has already given them a large monetary donation, but she knows how important it is to have things on hand, too. 

“You really don’t do anything by halves, do you?” Niall asks. She’s sitting on the floor of the living room of Harry and Louis’ suite, putting backpacks together at Louis’ request. Louis hadn’t expected Niall or Zayn to help, as they were on their honeymoon, after all. But once Niall had found out exactly what Louis was doing, she was all in.

“Of course not,” Louis replies. “What are we talking about now?”

“You. This. Being Super Louis again.”

Louis just shrugs. “It’s just what I can do.”

Niall smiles at her. “You’re one of a kind, Tommo.”

“Takes one to know one, Nialler,” Louis says. She tosses a shirt at Niall’s head that Niall catches out of the air and laughs. 

Louis’ phone rings on the floor and she answers it, tucking it between her chin and shoulder. She’s spent most of the day on the phone to suppliers trying to organise a regular donation of sanitary products to shelters across Europe. She’s had some troubles with the chain of command but she’s determined to get her way, even if that means being on the phone for a ridiculous amount of hours.

“ _So_ Forbes _got wind of what you’re doing and your stock went up_ ,” Eleanor says by way of greeting. “ _And even though they mainly focus on American businesses, they_ really _took a liking to what you’re doing at the moment_.”

“Yeah?” Louis asks absent-mindedly. “Can I put you on speaker? I need my hands.”

“ _Sure_ ,” Eleanor says. Louis takes the phone away from her ear and sets it on the sofa behind her so it’s within reach but not in the way. 

“It’s just me and Niall here,” Louis says, going right back to the task at hand.

“ _Hello, Niall_ ,” Eleanor greets.

“Hey, El! How’s your girlfriend?”

Eleanor chuckles. “ _She’s good. She says hello, too_.”

“You were saying?” Louis interrupts.

“ _You’re a billionaire_.”

“I’m a what?”

“ _Billionaire. Well_ , Tomlinson Enterprises _is. You’re officially the_ youngest _self-made billionaire in the entire United Kingdom_.”

“Holy fuck! Tommo!” Niall exclaims.

Louis blinks. She stares at the bottles of hand sanitiser in her hands and glances between them and the phone. “ _What_? How? _What_?!”

Eleanor laughs, and Niall follows. 

“Tommo, that’s amazing!” Niall says. She gets up and crosses the room, throwing her arms around Louis in a hug. 

“But… What I’m doing isn’t even a part of _Tomlinson Enterprises_. I’m doing this off my own back,” Louis says. Niall just squeezes her harder. 

“ _Either way, your stock has_ sky-rocketed _this week, and everyone wants a piece of Louis Tomlinson_ ,” Eleanor says. “ _I’ve been fielding calls all day. Gina’s had to set up an automated call response because we keep getting phone calls from_ everyone. _They either want stock, want to do business with you, or want to interview you_.”

Louis blinks again, her mind whirring. “I don’t know what to say.”

“You should see her, El,” Niall says. “She’s literally sitting here open-mouthed. Looks like a proper fish, hey?”

Louis makes a face at Niall who just laughs again. “Who’s asked for interviews?”

“ _Everyone_. The Guardian, The Daily Mail, The Sun, The Daily Telegraph, The Financial Times. _Even someone from_ Vanity Fair _has called wanting an interview_.”

“Can you send me a list?” Louis asks, blinking. Her brain hurts just trying to process everything Eleanor just said.

“ _Of course_ ,” Eleanor replies. “ _I know I’m in charge until you get back. Is there anything you’d like me to say in any official capacity_?”

Louis shakes her head but then realises that Eleanor can’t see her. “Er, not right now. I’ll have to have a think about what I want to say, and I’ll draft a press release tonight.”

“ _Alright_ ,” Eleanor agrees. “ _I’ll email you that list and let you get back to saving the world_.”

Louis laughs. “Love you, El.”

“ _Love you too, Supergirl_.”

The call disconnects and Louis looks at her phone, dumbfounded. 

“You’re a billionaire,” Niall says from next to Louis. She reaches out and squeezes her hand. “A fucking _billionaire_.”

“Fuck me,” Louis says. She leans her head back against the couch cushions and closes her eyes. “What the hell do I tell me mum?”

“I dunno, but dinner is on you tonight, Tommo!” Niall says. She kisses Louis’ cheek loudly and hugs her again. 

Louis turns in Niall’s embrace and hugs her tightly. She feels incredibly overwhelmed right now. And in desperate need of some grounding. 

“I’m just gonna call my mum,” Louis says shakily. 

“Go for it,” Niall says. “I’ll keep working on the bags.”

“Thanks.”

Louis picks up her phone and walks into the bedroom, closing the door firmly behind her. She keeps walking until she’s in the bathroom and shuts that door behind her too. She climbs into the empty (and thankfully dry) bath tub and sits down. Her breathing isn’t coming as easily as it usually is, and her hands won’t stop shaking as she tries to Facetime her mum.

“Hello, poppet! How are you?”

Louis nods. “Yeah.”

“Lou? What’s wrong?” Jay asks, concern lacing her voice. “Has something happened?”

Louis blinks and looks at her mum’s beautiful face filling her phone screen. “Eleanor just called. Apparently I’m a billionaire.”

Jay gasps. “ _Lou_!” 

“I know.” Louis says, tears springing to her eyes. “I think I’m having a panic attack.”

“Oh, poppet,” Jay says softly. “C’mon, breathe with me, sweetheart.”

She listens to her mum’s instructions and breathes with her. She stays on the phone for a good while, just letting her mum talk to her about the things that are happening back in Donny. How all of Louis’ siblings are. 

It works. She feels much more grounded than she did when she made the call. She talks to each of her sisters, letting them fill her mind with the things they’ve been doing these school holidays, and how excited the twins are to go back to school and see their friends. 

Even Doris and Ernest get a turn at waving at Louis on the phone.

“Achoo!” Ernest exclaims happily when he sees her. Louis can’t help but laugh and wish that she was there to cuddle him.

The bathroom door opens a while later and Harry pokes her head in.

“Hey,” she says. 

Louis gives her a smile and shifts her feet as Harry climbs into the tub opposite her. 

“Feeling better, love?” Jay asks as she takes the phone back from Doris, who almost hangs up on Louis. 

“A bit,” Louis replies. “I wish I was there so you could give me a cuddle, Mum.”

“Where’s your fiancée? Tell her to give you a big cuddle from me,” Jay says. 

“I’m right here,” Harry says. She shifts so that she’s tucked into Louis’ side and in view of the camera. “Hi, Jay!”

“Hi, Harry. Give her a big cuddle from me, will you?”

“Already am,” Harry replies. Louis angles the camera so that Jay can see Harry’s arms wrapped around her tightly. 

“Thank you, love. Louis. You’re an incredible woman. Remember what I said in Barcelona and take some time for _you_.” 

Louis nods. “Thanks, Mum.”

“I love you, poppet.”

“I love you, too.”

“I love you too, Jay,” Harry adds.

Jay smiles softly at them both. “Call me any time, okay?”

“I will,” Louis promises. “Thanks again.”

“Of course, sweetheart. That’s what mums are for.”

They say their goodbyes and Louis disconnects the call. She closes her eyes and wraps her arms around Harry holding her close. She buries her nose in Harry’s hair and inhales deeply, letting the scent fill her mind. 

“Niall told me the news,” Harry says after a few minutes. “Are you alright?”

Louis nods. “Yeah. A bit overwhelmed, but I’m alright.”

The bathroom door opens again and both Niall and Zayn appear.

“I didn’t know you’d moved the party in here!” Niall exclaims. “Move over, Haz.”

Somehow, probably defying the laws of physics, they all fit into the bath tub. Louis laughs as she’s poked in the stomach, her face almost meeting someone’s elbow, and her foot almost crushed under Niall’s arse. 

“You’re all the best,” Louis says emotionally. “Thanks for being here.”

“Mate, like we’d be anywhere else,” Niall says. 

“This is a comfy bath tub,” Zayn says. “It would be a shame if I turned the tap on.”

Louis barely has time to move her phone out of the way before Zayn turns on the tap, effectively wetting them all. Louis wouldn’t change a thing.

~*~

“I’ll do the _Vanity Fair_ interview, and one with _The Guardian_ , and no others,” Louis says into the phone the next day. She had drafted a press release and sent it to Eleanor, who had it sent out first thing that morning. Since then, the requests for interviews had tripled.

She’s sitting on the couch, completely alone in the hotel room. Harry’s gone out with Niall and Zayn for a bit to do some things together while Louis works. She feels a little bad about the fact that she’s working when they’re meant to be holidaying, but she can’t not complete what she’s started. 

“ _I’ll get Gina to schedule both of them for when you get back_ ,” Eleanor says.

“Thanks, El,” Louis says. 

“ _Why_ Vanity Fair _though_?” 

“Because the letter Elizabeth sent was really lovely,” Louis replies, thinking about the wonderful things that the _Vanity Fair_ worker had said in her email to Louis. “And she’s a woman. And a lesbian, too. A man would feel threatened by me and my success, as they’ve proven multiple times in the past. And a _straight_ man would only want to focus on my body and not my work.”

Eleanor hums. “ _True_ ,” she agrees. “ _I’ll tell Gina to make sure that your interviewer from_ The Guardian _is also a woman_.”

“Thanks,” Louis replies. “I have to go, but email me if you need anything else, alright?”

They say their goodbyes and disconnect the call. 

Louis turns back to her laptop and checks what she needs to do next. She has emails from suppliers that she needs to get back to, and a list of other things she needs to do, too. Her brain hurts just thinking about it all.

By the time she finishes half of her task list, her body is aching from sitting in the one spot for so long. She stands up, figuring she could use the break.

Her phone pings with a text and she smiles when she sees that it’s from Harry. 

‘ _Get dressed and meet me in the lobby in fifteen minutes. We’re going out for dinner_.” 

And really, who is Louis to ignore her?

They didn’t get the celebratory dinner that Niall had wanted to do the other night. Louis had stayed up making the fifty backpacks for the homeless shelter that she wanted to do. It had taken a while, but it was worth it. And Louis has only eaten when Harry has forced her to stop and take a break, too. She knows that she gets like this, and she’s thankful that she has Harry to tell her to _stop_.

Louis chooses a nice purple top and a pair of black slacks. She slides her feet into a pair of black open-toed flats and hastily runs a brush through her hair before leaving the room. She meets Harry in the lobby. 

“You look lovely,” Harry says when Louis reaches her. 

“Thank you, you do too.”

She feels like she hasn’t really _seen_ Harry since their time at the club. She knows that Harry has been around, because of course she has, but Louis has been a little fixated on her work.

“First though, we’re taking a boat ride across the canal. Which will lead us to our restaurant.”

“Sounds wonderful, princess.”

Harry beams at her and slips her hand into Louis’. She squeezes softly and leads Louis from the hotel. 

It’s a short walk to the canals where they get on a small boat with their own driver. Their driver nods at them and sets off once they’re safely on board. The ride doesn’t take long, and offers a lovely view. Louis admires everything around them, trying to commit it to memory. 

Their boat stops far too soon for Louis’ liking. They exit it and Harry takes Louis’ hand in hers, leading her to a restaurant. It looks quite busy, Louis thinks, as Harry tells the host that they have a reservation. Louis follows along, still holding Harry’s hand, wandering through the restaurant to a secluded area towards the back. They take their seats and the host says their server will be with them soon as she passes them menus.

“Are Niall and Zayn joining us?” 

Harry shakes her head. “Nope,” she says. “Tonight it’s just you and I.”

Louis smiles. “That’s nice.” Harry presses her foot against Louis’ under the table in response. 

Louis flicks open her menu and peers at the dishes that are listed. By the time their server comes to their table, Louis has pretty much figured what she wants. Mostly what she wants, of course, is a nice glass of wine. 

She places her order first, as Harry likes to take her time deciding. Ben, their server, is patient as Harry says what she’d like to eat, and he promises to be back soon with their drinks. 

“How’s Eve?” Harry asks. 

“She’s good,” Louis replies. “She’s settling in to the shelter, which is good. And her social worker has been really helpful. I’ve been a bit worried about her.”

“I know you have,” Harry says. She reaches across the table and takes Louis’ hand in her own. “I’m really proud of you. Not just for everything you’ve done for Eve, but for going the extra mile, too.”

Louis gives Harry a fond smile. “Thank you, love.”

Ben appears a moment later and fills their glasses with a delicious wine that Louis immediately wants another glass of. He sets the bottle on the table and assures them that their food won’t be too long.

“So, I’ve decided something.”

“Yeah?”

Harry nods. She takes her hand back from Louis’ and tucks her hair behind her ear in a nervous manner. “I want to run the LGBTQIA youth community centre back home.”

Louis blinks. She hadn’t expected that at all. 

“I know I don’t have the qualifications to properly run everything, but I want to get certified so I can help. I’m an excellent worker, and I put my all into everything. And I really think–”

“Harry, love,” Louis interrupts, reaching for Harry’s hand again. “You don’t need to give me a sales pitch. Are you sure you want to take on such a task?”

Harry nods. “I do. After seeing everything you’ve done this week, it solidifies it for me. I want to do the hands on work that will give immediate results. Just like you did with Eve.”

Louis’ heart swells with love and pride for her amazing, selfless fiancée. “The job is yours.”

Harry beams at her. “Really?”

“Really,” Louis echoes. “Once you’re certified and everything, though. I don’t want you to get overwhelmed by just jumping in. While you’re getting your certificates, you can help like you do at the Princess Trust.”

“Thank you!” Harry says happily. She bounces in her seat and reaches over to take Louis’ hands in her own, squeezing them gently. “Thank you, Lou. This means the world to me.”

“Of course, love. You’re the best person for the job.”

Harry ducks her head and smiles. “I can’t wait, Lou. We’ll really be changing the world.”

“One person at a time.”

Their server returns with their food a short while later, breaking the spell over them. They both thank him and Ben nods, wishing them enjoyment of their meal. 

Louis sighs at the first bite. She really hasn’t been eating properly these last few days. This meal tastes like absolute heaven in her mouth. She trades bites here and there with Harry, trying Harry’s food while Harry tries hers. 

By the time they’ve finished their dinner, Louis feels more comfortable than she has in days. She feels sleepily happy and warm. The wine has probably helped with that feeling, too.

They order dessert wine, too, and that arrives just moments before their desserts do. Louis licks her lips as a delicious looking slice of apple pie with a generous scoop of ice cream is set in front of her. She thanks Ben, and he gives her a grateful smile before disappearing. 

The first mouthful of the pie as delicious as Louis was hoping it would. It tastes like her mum’s, which is a hard task, she thinks. Harry has the same dessert, so no stray forks poke over into her food. Not that she would mind, of course. Louis takes her time eating, enjoying every single bite of food. 

When they’ve finished eating and Louis has finished off yet another glass of wine, they settle their bill, Louis leaving a very generous tip just because. 

Harry keeps a steady hand on Louis, who is definitely feeling the wine she’s had. She giggles into Harry’s neck as Harry walks them down the street.

“God it’s a beautiful night,” she says. She lifts her arms and twirls on the spot, swaying dramatically when she loses her footing. Harry laughs and wraps her arms tight around Louis’ middle.

“C’mon, let’s get you back to the hotel and to bed.”

Louis pouts. “I don’t want to go to bed yet.”

Harry’s breath is hot against Louis’ ear as she says, “Who says we have to go to sleep?” It sends shivers down her spine and puts determination in her step. 

It feels like it takes far too long to get back to the hotel, Louis thinks. She breathes a sigh of relief when she pushes the door open with her hip. She immediately gets her hands on Harry, crashing their mouths together in a heated kiss. 

They undress each other right there in the doorway, too caught up in each other to move. Louis sighs when Harry’s lips attach themselves to the side of her neck, nipping and sucking at the sensitive flesh. She moans, tilting her head to give Harry better access. 

“ _Fuck_ ,” she whimpers, her eyes falling closed. 

Harry’s hand pushes passed the elastic of her knickers and she cups Louis’ pussy in her hand, just holding it.

“ _Yes_ ,” Louis breathes, arching into Harry’s touch. 

Harry parts her folds and sinks a finger inside of Louis. She moans, rocking her hips in tandem with Harry’s movements. She captures Harry’s lips in her own again, kissing her hotly. Harry smiles against Louis’ lips, panting into her mouth. 

It’s over quicker than Louis expects it to be. Her entire body shudders as her orgasm washes over her, pressing back hard against the wall to keep herself upright. She pants heavily, trying to get her breathing under control as Harry moves her hand from between Louis’ legs. Harry locks gazes with Louis’ as she lifts her hand to her lips and sucks Louis’ wetness off her finger, moaning as she does. 

Louis’ eyes darken and she grabs Harry by the elastic of her knickers and tugs her forwards until they’re flush against each other. She kisses Harry hotly, chasing the taste on Harry’s tongue. 

“C’mon,” Harry whispers. “I’ve got a lot of plans for you tonight. Especially _finally_ getting to eat you out like I was promised the other night.”

“I do love the sound of that, princess.”

Harry grins and kisses Louis briefly before leading her to their bedroom, the door closing soundly behind them.

~*~

Shopping in the Kalverstraat is an experience all of its own.

Zayn had suggested they go there as she had heard it was _the_ best place to shop, and upon seeing it, Louis has to agree with her.

Harry immediately spots a Lush store and makes a beeline for it, Niall hot on her heels. Louis follows them inside at a more leisurely pace, popping items into a carry basket as she goes. She picks up a bath bomb that catches her eye and adds it to her rapidly growing collection. She can hear Harry and Niall somewhere in the store, giggling to themselves. 

“Can I put my stuff in your basket?” Zayn asks, holding out some moisturising lotion.

“Yeah, of course,” Louis replies, holding the basket out so that Zayn can add her things to it. “Ooh, is that nice? I need a new moisturiser, I can’t get mine anymore.”

Zayn nods. “Yeah, it’s good. I’ve been using it for years.”

“I might get one too.” She wanders over to where Zayn had picked hers up from and adds one to for herself to the basket.

Since they have so many things, Louis asks for their purchases to be delivered to their hotel. She doesn’t mind paying the extra fee, it’s worth not having to carry around heavy bags, especially when they’ve _just_ started shopping.

After dinner the other night with Harry, Louis feels a _lot_ more relaxed. She knew she needed to get out of her own head for a bit and just be with her fiancée. The night of amazing sex helped with that, too. 

Both her mum and Harry were right – she needed to stop and let someone else take care of her for a while. And they were meant to be on holiday for a reason. 

Not that Louis can’t multitask, of course. She is excellent at that. But she needs to just take a step back and do what she can as she can do it, rather than trying to cram everything in at once. 

She really is lucky to have such an amazing person in her life like Harry. 

As they’re walking along, Louis spots a shop selling ice cream. She doesn’t care that it’s only mid-morning, she wants an ice cream to go with the warm weather. Louis giddily chooses her flavour and happily licks her ice cream cone while the others order theirs. She grins at Zayn who joins her off to the side while Niall and Harry finish up. 

“Selfie?” Zayn offers.

“Did we _really_ have ice cream if we don’t document it?” Louis says teasingly as she gets out her phone. 

Zayn snorts, shaking her head with laughter. She leans over Louis’ shoulder a little, both of their ice creams visible in the photo as Louis takes it.

“Hey! No selfies without us!” Niall protests. She whips out her own phone and gets all of them in the shot. Louis pokes out her tongue as the camera’s shutter goes off and has to grin as Niall realises what she’s done.

“C’mon, let’s keep going,” Zayn says. 

They wander a little slower this time, each of them making sure they don’t drop their ice creams. Louis hums to herself, happily licking at her cone until it’s all gone. She wipes her sticky fingers on a wipe from inside her handbag, thankful that she keeps them there all of the time. 

“Let’s go in here,” Harry says, pointing to a shop. 

They all wander inside and Louis isn’t surprised to see that it’s a clothes shop. They separate, each going their own ways, and Louis immediately spots a gorgeous top that she thinks would look great on Lottie. She checks for Lottie’s size and slings it over her arm.

She keeps wandering around, adding things to her arm as she goes. Most of the clothes are for her sisters, and even her mum, but she chooses a few nice tops for herself, too.

“Lou!” Harry exclaims. “I think you’d love this.”

Louis makes her way to where Harry is and stops when she sees Harry holding up a beautiful red dress. It has a low scooped neck, just like Louis likes, and looks like it would hug her in all of the right places. 

“That’s beautiful,” she breathes. She checks the size and grins. 

“Go try it on!” Harry insists. She takes all of the things in Louis’ arms and Louis takes the dress to the dressing room. 

It fits as perfectly as Louis thinks it would. And the colour really brings out her complexion, she thinks. She admires herself in the mirror for a few moments before exiting the room and showing the dress off to Harry.

“Fuck me you look fit,” Niall pipes up from behind Harry. “Babes, doesn’t Lou look fit?”

Zayn nods. “You do.”

Louis ducks her head, blushing. “Thank you. I really like this dress.”

“If I wasn’t a married woman…” Niall trails off, giving Louis a wink. She grins at her as Louis shakes her head and re-enters the changing room to take the dress off.

“You’re a cheeky woman, Niall,” Louis calls out. 

“I know.”

Louis huffs a laugh and pulls her own clothes back on. She hangs the dress back up and admires it for a few more seconds before exiting the change room with it in hand

“That was a good find, Harry. Thank you.”

Harry preens at the compliment. “I got a matching one in pink.”

They keep going with their shopping, stopping every now and then in different shops. Most of the time, Louis leaves empty handed, but she can’t help but keep an eye out for things for her sisters, brother, and mum. She even manages to find something that she thinks Dan will like. Which absolutely makes her day. 

“Today was fun,” Niall says, collapsing on the sofa in Harry and Louis’ suite after their day of shopping. 

Louis shifts all of their shopping bags to the side, determined to go through them _much_ later. Right now, she just wants a glass of wine and to order some delicious sounding room service for dinner. 

“It was,” she agrees. 

“Alright, room service has been ordered,” Harry says as she meanders into the living room followed by Zayn, who yawns widely. 

“What movie are we watching?” Zayn asks.

“ _The Princess Diaries_?” Harry suggests. 

“ _Transformers_!” Niall yells.

“I’m not bloody watching _Transformers_ again, Niall,” Zayn says seriously. 

Louis bites back a laugh at _that_ image. “What about _Imagine Me and You_?”

“Oh, I _love_ that movie,” Harry says. 

“What about _Mamma Mia_?” Zayn suggests. 

“Yes!” Niall and Harry yell in unison. 

“ _Mamma Mia_ it is,” Louis agrees. “Thank goodness we’ve got a lot of alcohol because this is going to be a sing-along viewing!”

Harry squeaks excitedly and all but throws herself at Louis, wrapping her arms around Louis’ neck. “I love sing-alongs!”

Louis pats her bottom twice in succession. “I know you do, love. Alright, let’s get started with the drinks then.”

“On it,” Zayn says. 

Louis stares, impressed, as Zayn mixes up a perfect batch of cocktails. She blinks when she’s handed one and Zayn just grins and shrugs.

“I got bored when Niall watched _Transformers_ for the fiftieth time,” she says by way of explanation.

“Zayn Malik, international woman of mystery,” Louis comments. “I _love_ it.”

Zayn laughs. She raises her glass in toast. “To _Mamma Mia_!”

“To _Mamma Mia_!” they all echo.

Louis lifts her glass to her lips and has a nice, long drink. She sighs as the sweet liquid slides down her throat, making her insides tingle already. It tastes pretty good, too, she thinks. 

“It would be better if it was pink,” Harry pouts from next to Louis. 

Louis laughs and pulls Harry in close. “Not all cocktails have to be pink, love.”

“I know _that_ ,” Harry protests, “they’re just better when they _are_.”

Louis grins and swoops in to kiss Harry soundly on the lips. She kisses her until she feels Harry smiling into it. “That’s my girl,” she whispers. She kisses Harry once more before bringing her glass to her lips again.

Their dinner arrives after they’ve all had a second drink and Louis takes her plate and sits on the floor in front of the sofa. She balances her plate on her knee, her cocktail glass on the floor in front of her feet, and reruns of _Friends_ playing on the television. She relaxes as she eats, the other girls all doing the same.

After they’ve all finished dinner, they finish another couple of episodes of _Friends_ before Zayn gets up to make them more drinks. She passes them out and then puts _Mamma Mia_ on. Predictably, Harry squeals happily when the opening scene rolls onto the screen. 

By the half way point in the movie, Louis is suitably tipsy and giggling into her glass. She sings along to each of the songs with the girls, laughing and batting Niall away as she films her bad, drunken singing. 

“Sing it, Tommo!” Niall yells, standing on one of the sofas, her phone angled at Louis, who has Harry’s hairbrush in her hands as she sings along to the movie. 

Harry joins her, turning the song into a drunken duet that ends with them holding onto each other as their laughter threatens to topple them over. Louis slings an arm around Harry’s waist to keep her steady, pressing closer to her fiancée. 

The song ends and both Louis and Harry bow, grinning at each other when they stand. Niall cheers and jumps down from the sofa while Zayn claps.

“That was a good performance,” she compliments. Louis grins and throws her arms around Zayn’s neck. 

“Thanks, Zaynie,” she says, peppering kisses along Zayn’s cheek until Zayn playfully bats her away.

“I want some chips,” Harry says. Louis looks over to see Harry on her back on the sofa, holding onto her feet which are in the air. She’s an odd one. 

Niall nods like Harry has just had the best idea in the universe. “Me too! Let’s order more room service!”

She rushes over to the room’s phone and calls down to the kitchens to order some more food. Everyone shouts out their orders, and Niall asks for ‘an extra big plate of chips, please’ in such a politely drunken voice that it makes Louis grin.

“Budge up,” Louis says to Harry who lifts her legs higher so Louis can sit down. Harry lies her legs across Louis’ lap and grins at her.

“Foot rub?” she asks, wriggling her toes under Louis’ face. Louis bats the foot away but starts to rub it anyway. 

Harry starts moaning from a foot rub. Because of course she does. Louis rolls her eyes fondly in Harry’s direction and pushes harder on the spots that she knows Harry loves the most.

“Let’s play a game,” Niall says. The movie has ended and Niall has put on a music channel, but has turned it down a little lower than it was before. She pushes the coffee table out of the way and sits down on the floor. 

“What kind of game?” Louis asks, intrigued.

“Never have I ever?” Zayn suggests, sitting down next to Niall, fresh drinks in her hands.

“Alright,” Louis agrees. “Up you get,” she says to Harry, patting her calf. Harry pouts and all but falls off the sofa as she moves to get up.

Louis joins them after quickly relieving herself and she plops herself down, accepting the drink from Zayn.

“I’ll start,” Niall says eagerly. She wiggles on the spot and grins widely. “Never have I ever blamed my farts on a pet.”

Harry pokes her tongue out at Niall and has a drink. Louis laughs, but lifts her drink to her lips as well. 

“Never have I ever had a nightmare about zombies chasing me,” Harry says, grinning from ear to ear. Both Niall and Zayn have sips of their drinks.

“Never have I ever thought a cartoon character was hot,” Zayn says.

Louis is the first one to have a drink, but then the others reluctantly do, too. “Daphne and Velma were lesbians and no one can tell me otherwise,” she says decisively. 

Niall throws her head back in laughter. “I see it, Tommo! I see it.”

Louis grins and she pauses to think of a question. “Never have I ever… tried something that I’d seen on Pinterest.”

Harry’s mouth drops open, staring at Louis. “The _betrayal_!” she says dramatically before having a sip of her drink. Surprisingly, Zayn takes a drink, too.

She shrugs when they look at her. “I like art.”

Harry grins and fist bumps Zayn in solidarity. 

They keep going around until Zayn has to refresh their drinks. Their room service comes and they each eat their respective meals as they keep playing the game.

“Never have I ever worn a butt plug,” Niall says through a mouthful of chips. 

Harry rolls her eyes but takes a drink. “I hate you,” she says without any malice.

“Never have I ever laughed so hard that I peed my pants,” Harry counters, giving Niall a _look_. She waves a chip in Niall’s direction and promptly drops it when Louis takes a drink.

Louis laughs when she sees the looks the others give her. She sets her glass down with a shrug. “It was in uni the last time it happened. Liam and I had been drinking and something funny happened and a _little_ bit of wee came out.”

Harry gives her a fond look and Louis bumps their shoulders together. 

“Never have I ever had a crush on a friend’s sibling,” Zayn says with a devious grin. 

“Zayn!” Niall exclaims, her drink in her hand. “You are my _wife_! You’re meant to be on my side!”

Zayn just shrugs and laughs when Niall takes a drink. She pops a chip in her mouth, completely unaffected. 

“Never have I ever,” Louis begins, pausing dramatically while she thinks of something. She scoops some ketchup onto the last chip and pops it into her mouth. “Flirted with a teacher.”

Harry groans and takes a sip of her drink, then both Niall and Zayn do, too. 

“Mine was a dare,” Zayn says with a shrug. 

“I flirted with Miss Harrison, the shy one, from year eight,” Niall says. “She was cute, and I was still in my rebellious phase.”

“Mine was my year eleven English teacher,” Harry says wistfully. “She was… well, she was everything.”

Louis looks at Harry, interested to know where this story is going. 

“She was the best teacher I’d ever had,” Harry continues, stacking their empty plates together and putting them to the side. “And I fancied her quite a bit. She left only a few months into the term, though. Her mum had a stroke so she went back home. And before she left, I flirted with her, just to see if I had a shot.”

“You really do have a thing for older women, don’t you?” Louis teases. She places her hand on Harry’s thigh and squeezes gently so that Harry knows she understands. 

“Older women are sexy,” Harry says unapologetically. She leans over and kisses Louis softly on the lips. 

“Alright, let’s make this more interesting,” Niall says. “Never have I ever masturbated with my parents in the room.”

Harry makes a pinched face but takes a drink. 

“Ha ha!” Niall exclaims. “I _knew_ it.”

“You’ve been in the room before, too,” Harry replies with an easy shrug and Niall’s mouth drops open. 

“Really?” 

Harry nods. “Yep,” she says, popping the ‘p’, but doesn’t elaborate further. “Never have I ever Googled sex positions.”

Niall gives Harry a half-hearted glare and takes a drink. Louis and Zayn take drinks, too.

“What? I was a teenager once, too, you know,” Louis says when Harry gives her an incredulous look.

“We figured you were just good at sex naturally,” Zayn replies when no one says anything. “Especially with how Harry bragged about how you were so good at sex after your first time. And every other time since.”

Louis grins and gives Zayn a high-five. “Thanks, but no. I had no idea how to eat pussy the first time. I’m a fucking champ at it now, though.”

Harry lets out a happy sigh. “Yes, you are.” She reaches over and laces her fingers with Louis’, squeezing gently.

“Never have I ever faked an orgasm,” Zayn says. No one takes a drink.

“Look at us gays getting our girls off properly!” Niall exclaims happily. She curls into Zayn’s side and kisses her neck. 

“I like orgasms too much to fake them,” Harry says. “I feel bad for anyone who feels like they have to fake it.”

“Me too, love,” Louis agrees. “Alright, I’ve got one. Never have I ever smoked a spliff right after sex.”

Unsurprisingly, Zayn is the only one to drink. She just shrugs and ducks her head. Niall kisses her cheek noisily until she’s smiling. 

“Nothing wrong with it,” Niall says. “I’m just too out of breath after sex to smoke.”

“It calms me down,” Zayn explains.

“I get it,” Louis says softly and Zayn gives her a grateful smile.

“I got one!” Niall exclaims. “Never have I ever had anal sex.”

Harry downs the entire rest of her drink. “What?” she says when Niall looks at her with wide eyes. “I like anal sex.”

“We knew you liked your butt plugs, but I didn’t know you’d done _anal_. Doesn’t it hurt?”

Harry shrugs. “Not really. Anything can hurt if you don’t prepare properly, but Louis is a _really_ attentive lover.” Louis doesn’t even have a chance to respond before Harry is draping her arms around Louis’ shoulders and kissing her hotly. She holds Harry’s hips to keep her steady.

“ _Hot_ ,” Niall says. 

Harry settles herself in Louis’ lap, her back pressed to Louis’ chest. “Never have I ever watched someone have sex.” She cackles when both Niall and Zayn take a drink.

“I still think about that. Not _a lot_ , but I still think about it at times,” Niall says. “And I’m up for a repeat performance _whenever_ you want.”

Louis hums. “That probably was a one-time deal,” she says. Harry wiggles in Louis’ lap and Louis knows that she’s thinking of that night in Louis’ hot tub, too.

“I’m horny,” Harry whispers into Louis’ ear, biting the lobe as she does. 

“Alright, ladies, I think it’s time we wrap this up,” Louis says. “Thanks for hanging out with us. And the game.”

“You’re going to go have sex, aren’t you?” Niall asks bluntly.

Harry grins and nods. She gets up out of Louis’ lap and holds her hand out for Louis to take. “Yes,” she says. “Now please go.”

Zayn laughs and stands. “Thanks for having us over.”

“Any time. Now go. I want to eat my fiancée out,” Harry says, making a shooing motion with her hands. 

“Love you, Haz,” Niall says fondly. She kisses both of them on the cheek before leaving with Zayn. 

Harry gives Louis a pointed look and all but drags her to the bedroom. Louis laughs as Harry tries to hastily undress but ends up stumbling and falling into the side of the bed. She shakes her head fondly and closes the gap between them.

“Take a moment, princess,” she says. “We’ve got all night.”

The entire evening is one of the best nights Louis has had in a while and she’s so thankful for the amazing friendship with each of these incredible women in her life.

~*~

On their last day in Amsterdam, Eve tells Louis that she’s managed to get a flat with a couple of other people from the shelter. All of them are LGBTQIA youths, the eldest having just turned nineteen. Louis already knew this, though. She had organised it with Elsa, Eve’s social worker, earlier in the week. She also paid the first year’s full rent on the flat so none of them have to struggle like they have been.

“And I’m going to finish secondary school, too,” Eve says. Her smile lights up her entire face and it makes Louis so happy. 

“That’s wonderful, Eve,” Louis says, her heart happy for this girl in front of her. She reaches out and tucks a strand of Eve’s brown hair behind her ear. “Promise you’ll keep in touch?”

Eve nods. “I will.”

Louis gives her a tight hug, unwilling to let go just yet. So much has happened for Eve since that night on the street, and Louis is just so grateful that she was able to meet such an extraordinary young woman.

“I might even go to uni,” Eve says when they part. “I want to be a social worker and work with homeless kids.”

“That sounds like a _fantastic_ plan,” Louis says, emotion lacing her voice. She brushes at her eyes, trying not to cry too much in front of Eve.

“Thank you, Louis,” Eve says sincerely. “Without you, I wouldn’t be able to do any of this.”

Louis just nods. “I’m really glad I met you.”

“Me too.”

They hug again and Louis squeezes a bit tighter, wanting to remember this moment forever.

“Stop hogging all of the hugs,” Harry says from next to them. 

Louis laughs wetly and finally releases Eve. She steps back so that Harry can give Eve hugs, too. 

“I’m really going to miss you both,” Eve says. “My life has literally changed because I met you.”

“Mine too,” Louis says. She reaches over and squeezes Eve’s hand for a few seconds before letting to. “I wish you the best of luck for your life, Eve. Make it count.”

Eve throws her arms around Louis once more, hugging her tightly. Louis is reluctant to let go. She just wants to protect this girl for the rest of her life. And she has a feeling that Harry feels the same.

“I left you a birthday present on your bed, by the way,” Louis says when they eventually part. “It’s not much, but you missed your sixteenth birthday. I hope you like it.”

“Thank you,” Eve says. She loosens her hold completely on Louis, stepping back. “I’ll email you in a few days once I’ve settled into my new flat.”

“Looking forward to it.”

They say their goodbyes and Louis gladly takes Harry’s offered hand, letting her fiancée lead her from the shelter for the last time. 

“You’re a phenomenal woman, Louis Tomlinson.”

Louis takes a shaky breath and nods, getting into the taxi that’s been waiting for them for the last half an hour while they said their goodbyes to Eve. Harry gives the taxi driver the location to take them to and he nods, pulling away from the kerb. 

With a sigh, Louis leans heavily against the seat behind her, her entire body sagging into the leather. Harry’s hand finds hers again, lacing their fingers together. She brings their joined hands up to her lips and kisses the back of Harry’s hand. Harry gives her a soft smile at the action.

They arrive at the airport and Louis pays their taxi driver, giving him an extra twenty Euros for his patience, which he thanks her for. Louis rolls her suitcase across the tiled floor, Harry right next to her. They’re flying privately again, which Louis is grateful for. She doesn’t really have the patience to be dealing with waiting in crowded terminals right now. 

Soon, they’re boarding their plane and are flying off to Rome. The flight isn’t a long one, thankfully. It’s just long enough for Harry to set up a movie for them to watch for the duration of their flight.

The first thing they do after checking in to their hotel is go and get ice cream. At Harry’s insistence, because she wanted to try real gelato. They sit on a bench, watching people go by as they enjoy their gelatos. Louis feels a little heavy-hearted, though. She didn’t really want to leave Amsterdam, and especially Eve, but they both had lives to carry on with.

“Let’s just walk around for a bit,” Harry says after they’ve finished eating. “Take your mind off things for a bit.”

“Thanks, love,” Louis says gratefully. She kisses the back of Harry’s hand and gladly follows her fiancée down the streets of Rome.

~*~

“How is my darling niece and her other beautiful mummy?”

“They’re both really good,” Liam replies, her expression changing to one of absolute fondness at the thought of her family. Louis misses Liam a lot, and while Facetime is excellent for being able to see her gorgeous face, it doesn’t do much for the tactile side of Louis who just wants to hug Liam for about five minutes straight.

“That’s good to hear,” Louis says as she wiggles on the sofa, changing positions. She adjusts her arm so that it’s resting on the back cushions a little more. “How’s Soph coming along with her clothing line?”

“Really good,” Liam says with a nod. “She and Willow are in a meeting right now going over some final touches. If Harry still wants to walk in the show, Soph would be really grateful.”

“Pretty sure she will,” Louis replies. “You know how Harry likes to wear pretty things and she’s been keeping in contact with Sophia throughout the whole process. I think she might even have convinced Kendall to come over and walk in the show, too.”

“Really?” Liam asks. “Eleanor hasn’t said anything about her coming over.”

“I’m not sure if she knows, to be honest,” Louis says. “Harry’s been messaging Kendall over the last few days about it. I think Kendall wants to surprise her.”

Liam smiles. “That’s nice. El has been a bit snappy this week.”

Louis winces, glad she isn’t there to witness that first hand. “I’ll call her later and check in.”

The camera shifts as Liam gets up and walks around her office. She opens the filing cabinet and reaches in to get a file while Louis talks. Even just seeing Liam like this makes Louis miss her more. She’s used to just wandering into Liam’s office whenever she wants a chat or just to be with someone she knows and loves. Louis is beyond grateful for her time off, and her holiday around Europe, but she’s really itching to get back home.

“How’s everything else over there?” Louis asks after a few minutes. Liam is back at her desk, the phone propped up against something so she has both hands free to continue working. Liam is exceptionally good at multi-tasking when Louis is talking to her.

“Good,” Liam replies with a nod. “I’m going through some resumés now. It’s not the same without your commentary, of course. I might _actually_ get some work done without you looking over my shoulder.”

“Careful, Leeyum,” Louis says, wagging her finger in front of the camera. “I might have to fly over there just to annoy you.”

“You _could_ ,” Liam starts, “but I’m pretty sure your fiancée wouldn’t forgive you for missing that art show you promised to take her to tonight.”

Louis huffs a sigh. “I know, I know.” She flicks her hair over her shoulder. “Speaking of, I’d better make sure that my fiancée hasn’t turned into a giant prune. She’s been in the bath for more than an hour now.”

Liam laughs and the sound makes Louis’ insides tingle with warmth. “Or fallen asleep.”

“She’s probably masturbating,” Louis says and the look that crosses Liam’s face as she says those words is absolutely worth it. She laughs as Liam pokes her tongue out at her.

“I’m hanging up now,” Liam says pointedly.

“ _Love you_ , Li!” 

“Love you too, Lou. Don’t forget to call Eleanor.”

“I won’t,” Louis says. “Is she in her office?”

Liam nods. “Last I checked, yeah.”

“Good,” Louis replies. “Alright, Payno, take care. Give Sophia a sloppy kiss for me. Make another baby and all that.”

Liam lets out an exasperated sigh and she rolls her eyes in Louis’ direction. “Good bye, Louis.”

Louis can’t stop grinning, even as Liam disconnects the call. She keeps her call log open and hits Eleanor’s name, waiting for the Facetime call to connect.

“You know, I _thought_ I could hear Liam’s exasperated noises coming from the HR department,” Eleanor says by way of greeting.

Louis grins. “What can I say? I’m a charming woman!”

Eleanor laughs. “You’re _something_ alright.”

Louis places her free hand on her chest. “You _wound_ me, Eleanor!”

Eleanor rolls her eyes in Louis’ direction. “You’ll get over it.” She turns away from Louis for a moment and it takes Louis a second to realise that she’s answered the call from her laptop.

“A little birdie told me that you’ve been a bit snappy lately.”

Eleanor whirls around and stares at Louis. “I’m a bit swamped these days. _Someone_ went and decided to become a billionaire, so I’m dealing with all of that. Liam’s hiring some more staff to pick up the slack. I’ve got five meetings tomorrow about our investment fund, and I haven’t had sex in weeks. My girlfriend is off doing modelling stuff in LA and is in a different time zone so we don’t even get to talk that often. So yes. I’m a bit snappy.”

Louis’ expression softens. “El,” she says. “Take a breath.” 

To her surprise, Eleanor does. She sets the papers in her hands down and closes her eyes. 

“Do you want me to fire you? Because I can. Then you can move to America and be with Kendall.”

The glare that Eleanor gives her makes Louis recoil slightly. Her expression changes a second later. “That’s nice, but no.”

Louis bites her lip. “Look,” she begins, shifting on the sofa. “I wasn’t going to say anything until the details were set.” 

The bathroom door opens and Harry wanders through, completely naked. Eleanor squawks and covers her face with her hands.

“Sorry,” Louis apologises. She gets up off the couch and shifts to the other end so that Eleanor can’t see Harry’s nakedness. Harry goes about making herself a cup of tea and catching Louis’ gaze every few moments. It’s incredibly distracting. And Harry knows _exactly_ what she’d doing, the vixen. 

“You were saying?” Eleanor prompts. 

Louis blinks, turning her gaze back towards her phone. Eleanor has an eyebrow raised in Louis’ direction and a smirk on her lips. “Huh?”

Eleanor laughs and Louis pokes her tongue out at her. She sighs and shakes her head. Harry wanders over and passes Louis a cup of tea and leans over, kissing her soundly on the lips. Louis almost drops her phone. 

“Thanks, love,” she says throatily. Harry grins over her shoulder as she wanders away.

“Earth to Louis!” Eleanor calls out. Louis hastily rights her phone and gives Eleanor a sheepish grin.

“Sorry,” she says. She’s not really sorry, though. Harry’s been like this all day. It’s absolutely driving Louis crazy. She loves it, though. And Harry knows that, too.

“Have I lost you completely?”

Louis shakes her head. “Nah. Where was I?”

“You were going to tell me something? Something about not wanting to say anything until details had been sorted?” Eleanor prompts.

Louis blinks, going over their conversation in her head. “Right!” she exclaims. “ _Right_. Well. I didn’t want to say anything until I got back, when the details were finalised.”

Eleanor nods. “Well?”

Louis hesitates for a moment, taking a sip of her cuppa.

“Christ this is worse than watching _The X Factor_ on results night,” Eleanor quips. “Just spit it out already.”

“I’m opening an office in LA,” Louis blurts. “And I want you to run it.”

Eleanor’s mouth drops open and she goes completely still. “What?” she gasps. “I thought you wanted me to run the Japan office?”

“I _did_ ,” Louis replies. “Since you’re fluent in Japanese. But I think you’d be better suited to our LA office.”

“You’re not pulling my leg right now?” 

Louis shakes her head. “Not at all.” 

“ _Fuck_.” Eleanor leans heavily back in her chair. “I… _Wow_.”

“Obviously you don’t have to say anything yet. And the office is a few months at least away from opening, but I wanted you to know so you can think about it.” Louis takes another sip of her tea. 

“Shit, Lou, this is _huge_.”

“Yeah, it is,” she agrees. “I got the call shortly after we landed here in Rome about the location go ahead. It fits. Especially now you’re in a relationship with someone from LA… You’ll always have a position here, no matter where you’re located.”

“Shit, Lou, you really know how to spring something on a girl, don’t you?”

Louis gives her a sheepish grin. “You deserve it, El. You’ve put in the hard yards lately. Especially taking over while I’m not there. You’ve more than proven yourself.”

“I’d get a raise, wouldn’t I?” Eleanor asks. “I’d be able to afford a condo.”

“I’ll buy you a condo if you want,” Louis offers. “Anything you’d want to make it easier for you, I’m happy to help do.”

Eleanor grins at her. “Fucking hell, Louis. Alright, I’m in.”

Louis’ eyes widen. “Just like that?”

Eleanor nods. “Just like that.”

“Alright, then,” she says. “I’ll get that going then. The only condition is you’d better be back for my wedding.”

“Of course,” Eleanor says. “Like I’d pass up a holiday in Paris. At a bloody _castle_ , too.”

“Chateau,” Louis automatically corrects, thinking of the beautiful place that she and Harry are going to get married in. It’s going to be a fairy tale wedding even if it’s the last thing that Louis does. 

“Alright, I’ve got work to do, and Liam wants to go over some resumés with me, too.”

Louis nods. “Have fun.”

Eleanor makes a face at her. “I’ll talk to you later. Thanks for the news, by the way.”

“Thanks for saying yes,” Louis replies. 

They say their goodbyes and Louis disconnects the call. She plugs her phone in to charge and finishes off her tea. She wonders where Harry and her naked body is, she’s got some news to share with her.

~*~

“You look positively beautiful.” Louis drops a kiss to Harry’s bare shoulder several hours later. She closes her eyes, lips lingering on the soft skin. She trails kisses along Harry’s shoulder and up her neck, pausing on the pulse point. Harry’s breath hitches sightly and she tilts her head to give Louis better access.

Louis moves back enough to catch Harry’s gaze in the mirror they’re standing in front of. Harry sets the eyeshadow palette in her hands down on the bathroom counter and turns in Louis’ embrace. 

“I’m not wearing anything,” Harry says softly.

Louis grins. “I know.”

Their lips meet in a heated kiss. Louis sighs, fingers digging into Harry’s hips _just_ enough to make Harry gasp. She slides her tongue against Harry’s own, relishing in how responsive is. Harry arches into her touch, pressing against Louis, who wants nothing more than to just kneel between Harry’s legs and eat her out, but they have plans. 

As if Harry can hear her thoughts, she huffs and pouts when the kiss ends. 

“That’s not fair,” she whispers. Her eyes are still closed, her lips parted and her breathing a little shallow.

“Let’s make tonight more interesting,” Louis says, brushing the loose strands of Harry’s artfully pinned up hair over her shoulder.

“I’m listening,” Harry says. Her eyes are open, intrigue written on her face. 

Louis reaches into the top drawer where she had put something earlier. She holds it in her entire hand and gets the loop around her finger and holds them out for Harry to see.

Harry’s head cocks to the side. “Are those Ben Wa balls?”

Louis nods then shakes her head. “These _specifically_ are Luna beads, but they’re essentially the same thing.”

Harry grins. “And you got me pink ones.”

“Well,” Louis beings. “My princess likes being pretty _inside_ and out.”

Harry preens at the comment. 

“C’mon, let’s get this night started the right way.” Louis exits the bathroom and stops at the bed. “Lie down,” she instructs Harry, who immediately complies. “Spread your legs.”

Harry’s legs open and Louis pauses, drinking her in. She takes a breath, refocusing on what she’s doing. Harry’s pussy shines as Louis lowers her head. She closes her eyes, breathing in Harry’s scent before she slides her tongue into Harry’s entrance. She feels Harry’s walls immediately clamping down around her, trying to draw her in further. She moans as she slides her tongue out of Harry and licks a few times over her clit, eliciting a throaty groan from Harry. She pulls back completely, licking her lips, Harry’s taste heavy on her tongue. 

Louis expects the pout from Harry that follows. “You need to be prepared properly, love.”

“Tease,” Harry quips.

Louis picks up the balls and gently guides them into Harry’s wet entrance. Harry wriggles at the intrusion, her muscles contracting immediately once both balls are in and the plastic loop is sitting outside of her body.

“Alright?”

Harry nods and she pushes herself up to stand. “ _Oh_.” She grabs on to Louis to steady herself, her eyes fluttering closed. “Oh that’s nice.”

Louis gives her a cheeky grin. “Alright, time for you to get dressed.”

She kisses Harry softly on the lips before she crosses over into the bathroom to wash her hands. She leans against the doorjamb and watches as Harry gets dressed. She bites back a laugh when Harry squeaks as she bends over to pull on her knickers. 

“Having fun, princess?” Louis teases.

Harry glares at Louis over her shoulder. “You’re horrid. But these feel so… _odd_. But in a good way.”

“Let’s see how you go tonight, then.” Louis picks up her clutch that matches her dress and opens it to make sure she hasn’t forgotten anything.

Harry dresses, going braless, just like Louis expected her to. Her dress is a lavender colour tonight, and it makes Harry’s green eyes really pop. Louis admires her as Harry moves around the room, hunting for her ballet flats that she had bought in Amsterdam. She finally locates them and stands up straight, her eyes fluttering at the movement. 

Tonight, Louis thinks, is going to be an interesting one.

They make it to the gallery after several people have already arrived. Louis checks their handbags and jackets, tucking the stub of their ticket into her bra for safe keeping. Harry’s hand tightens in Louis’ own every so often and Louis has to bite the inside of her cheek to keep from outright smirking. 

“Champagne, love?” Louis asks as a server walks towards them with a tray of champagne.

“Of course,” Harry replies. 

Louis accepts two glasses and passes Harry one. She takes a sip and holds it in her mouth for a moment before swallowing. “That’s good.”

Harry hums her agreement from next to her. “Are you planning on buying anything tonight, or are we here to browse? And play?”

Louis squeezes Harry’s hand gently as she leads them towards another section of the art gallery. “Why not all three?” 

Harry grins. “Alright.”

They both turn to a painting on the wall and Harry hums for a moment, taking a sip of her drink. 

“This one,” she begins. “Is about the artist’s childhood imaginary friend. Their name was Bob–”

“Bob?” Louis interrupts.

“Shh, yes. It was Bob,” Harry says with fond exasperation. “You can see by the colours used on the side that it indicates childhood loss and desperation to find that friend again.”

Louis nods, playing along. “Alright. What about this one?” She points to another painting hanging a few metres away on the same wall.

“Oh, easy,” Harry says. “Step back and see that they connect. In fact, this entire wall connects.”

Louis carefully steps back with Harry until they can see the entire wall. Harry isn’t completely wrong – the entire wall’s worth of paintings look like a set. The colours start out brighter and slowly get darker and Louis can tell that they were painted with the same subject in mind.

“Bob died,” Harry says sadly. “That’s why the artist can no longer find him.”

“Maybe Bob moved on to be someone else’s imaginary friend?” Louis suggests.

Harry shakes her head. “Nope, he’s dead.”

They move on, making up stories about each and every painting they come across. Louis giggles into Harry’s shoulder with each story growing more and more outrageous than the last.

“I’m telling you! She was abducted by aliens!” Harry exclaims. Her voice has grown a little louder with all of the champagne she’s had and her cheeks are flushed happily. Louis can’t help but lean over and kiss her.

“I wasn’t abducted by aliens,” a voice behind them says. “But that’s an _interesting_ theory.”

Louis watches as Harry goes ramrod straight, biting her lips together. She barely stops herself from laughing at the image.

“Sorry, there’s no offence meant,” Louis apologises.

“None taken.”

“I’m Louis,” she says, offering out her hand. “And my fiancée with the vivid imagination is Harry.” 

“Eloise.” They shake hands and Louis quickly puts her empty champagne glass on an empty tray as a server walks passed them.

“You’re very talented,” Louis says. “Harry thinks so too, don’t you, love?”

Harry nods, still too embarrassed to speak.

“Thank you,” Eloise says with a smile. “What’s your favourite piece? Apart from this one which has inspired thoughts that I was abducted by aliens?”

“It’s because there’s so much green,” Harry mumbles. Louis bites the insides of her cheeks to keep from responding. Thankfully, Eloise seems to not have heard her.

“We like the first lot. The seven paintings at the entrance,” Louis says. 

“Ah, those,” Eloise says, turning to face the paintings Louis is talking about. “They were inspired by my imaginary friend.”

Harry’s eyes dramatically widen.

“He first appeared to me when I was three,” Eloise continues, completely unaware of Harry’s reaction.

“Oh?” Louis prompts.

Eloise nods, tossing her dyed red hair over her shoulder. “He was the _world_ to me. He stayed with me for three years. We got up to a lot of adventures together. One day, he died. Right in front of me. I was never the same again. I’ve spent years yearning for his presence in my life. The closest I’ve been able to get to it is painting. His name was Bob.”

“I _knew_ it!” Harry exclaims, eyes wide.

Louis laughs, winding her arm around Harry’s middle. “She’s pulling your leg, love.”

Eloise smiles warmly. “That I am. My security detail overheard you earlier and filled me in. He said you’ve been making up stories for each of my paintings.”

Harry’s expression falls. “Well, now I’m just disappointed.”

“Please don’t,” Eloise says, her warm brown eyes sparkling. “Apparently your stories have been quite the hit around here tonight.”

“Oh,” Harry says, perking up. 

“The alien abduction one is my favourite,” Eloise says.

“Mine too,” Louis agrees. “I’d like to buy it.”

“Which one?” Eloise asks.

“All of it.”

Eloise’s eyes widen and she blinks. “I… _Really_?”

Louis nods. “I really love each of these pieces. They tell a story and I’d hate to split them up.”

“That’s seventeen pieces of artwork.”

Louis nods. “I know. Some of these would look great in our new community centre back home.”

“Let me just go get my agent,” Eloise says, still a little shocked.

“Take your time, we’ll be right here.”

Harry presses into Louis’ side. “These really would look good in the community centre.”

“I know,” Louis says softly. “The colours are bright and happy enough to not have such a negative energy. And we want that for the centre. And for the shelter. They bring warmth to them, I think.”

Harry smiles. “Yeah, I think so, too.”

“How are you doing with the beads?” Louis asks in a low voice. She slides her hand a little lower down Harry’s back, right above her arse and presses ever so slightly. Harry’s eyes flutter closed for a brief moment before opening and looking around the room. No one is watching them, thankfully. But Louis knows that the _idea_ sends a thrill through Harry.

“Good,” she replies eventually. “Ready to take them out.”

“Soon, love,” Louis says as she presses a gentle kiss to the side of Harry’s neck.

The sale of the artwork goes smoothly. As Louis thought it would, it made other potential buyers _very_ interested in Eloise’s work, and she suddenly has several business cards in her hand with _very generous_ offers for re-selling the pieces. 

They leave the art gallery hand in hand and with a lovely art collection to their name. 

Louis pushes open their hotel room door and wanders in, setting down her things. She can see how frustrated Harry is, and her taking her time is only making Harry more impatient. 

“Let’s shower first,” Louis says. “I want to get you nice and _clean_.” Harry perks up at the emphasis and she grins, practically skipping all the way to the shower. It amuses Louis, as she follows behind a moment later.

After their shower, Harry spreads out on the bed, completely naked and moaning underneath Louis as she fingers her arse open. Her little breathy noises spur Louis on, working her fingers until Harry is a literal squirming mess. 

“I’m ready,” Harry pants. “Please, Lou. _Please_.” 

Louis removes her fingers and quickly gets up to clean them and to leave Harry wanting more. She steps into the strap on they’ve chosen and secures it to her body before coating the dildo with lubricant. 

“On your knees,” Louis says, and Harry immediately complies. 

She lines herself up behind Harry and nudges the head against Harry’s entrance. She moves slowly until just the head is inside of Harry’s body. 

“Fuck,” Harry moans, reaching back, covering Louis’ hand with her own. She braces herself on her other hand, which is trembling slightly. “God that feels good.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah.” Harry looks over her shoulder and Louis and nods. “Keep going. I can take more.”

Slowly, inch by inch, Louis moves until she’s completely buried inside of Harry’s arse. She stills completely, letting Harry get used to the feeling. She runs her hands over Harry’s back, down her sides and gently squeezes her arse cheeks. Harry pushes back into her and moans at the action. 

“You can move,” Harry says after a few more moments. “I’m ready.”

“Safe word out if you need to, Harry.”

“Promise.”

Louis shifts and pulls back a few inches before pushing back inside of Harry. It’s always fascinating to her to watch whatever brightly coloured dildo they have attached to the harness slide in and out of Harry’s body. 

She gets up a steady pace, Harry keeping braced on her arms, pushing back into Louis with every thrust that Louis gives. They work up a rhythm together, their heavy breathing filling the quiet room. 

“ _Oh god_ ,” Harry moans. “Fuck! Lou, right there!”

Louis keeps up the pace, her fingers digging in to the flesh of Harry’s hips a little harder as she thrusts in. She leans over Harry, kissing across her shoulders and down her back as far as her lips can reach. A light sheen of sweat covers Harry, making her practically glow in the low light of the bedroom.

“Love you,” she mumbles into the skin of the back of Harry’s neck. 

“Love you too,” Harry groans out. “God, this feels good.”

“Tell me.” 

“The beads… they’re... _oh my god_! They’re pushing against my g-spot.”

It all clicks into place in Louis’ mind. She shifts angles ever so slightly and is rewarded with a string of curses falling from Harry’s lips. She keeps up the pace she’s set, Harry pushing back just as hard.

“Fuck, Lou! I’m going to come.”

“Then come for me, princess,” Louis says. Her hands can’t stop touching Harry, holding her and squeezing in each new spot. 

Harry’s fists tighten in the bedsheets and she lets out a noise unlike any other as she comes, squirting hard. 

“Oh fuck, oh fuck,” Harry mumbles. Her upper half collapses against the bed, unable to hold herself up any more. 

Louis carefully removes the dildo and throws it to the side to deal with later. She gently lowers Harry’s body to the bed and rolls her over.

“Open your legs, sweetheart,” she says. Harry’s body twitches but she obeys. Louis gently tugs on the loop and slides the balls out of Harry’s body. She hisses a little, her muscles clenching and unclenching, trying to keep them inside of her. Louis deposits them in the bathroom sink and re-joins Harry on the bed. 

“These sheets are ruined,” she says, trailing a finger down Harry’s stomach. She caresses Harry’s breast in her hand, thumbing over the nipple. 

“Sorry,” Harry mumbles.

“Nothing to be sorry about,” Louis replies. “It was fun.”

Harry opens her eyes and looks at Louis. “It was intense,” she says. “And fucking amazing.”

“Good.” Louis strokes down Harry’s side, taking in the finger shaped marks that she left on Harry’s body. She stops between Harry’s legs and parts Harry’s folds. 

“Mm,” Harry mumbles, pressing into Louis’ hand. “Please.”

Louis smiles down at Harry’s lax form and lowers her head until their lips slot together. She gently parts her folds, slipping her fingers inside of Harry’s wet entrance, pressing where the Kegel balls had just been.

“Feels nice,” Harry mumbles against Louis’ lips. She reaches up to cup Louis’ face, stroking her cheeks with her thumbs. 

Louis takes her time, enjoying how sleepy and pliant Harry is. This orgasm isn’t as intense for Harry as the first one was, but she still squirts a little, liquid dribbling out of her pussy. Louis is absolutely entranced by it. She rubs over Harry’s clit with her thumb and Harry’s body twitches under her actions, legs automatically trying to close around Louis’ hand. 

“Love you so much, Lou,” Harry says sleepily. 

“Love you too, princess.”

“Come sit on my face,” Harry says, reaching out to pat Louis’ arse cheek. “I’m too tired to move.”

With a huff of a laugh, Louis moves, straddling Harry until her pussy is right over Harry’s mouth. She moans at the first swipe of Harry’s tongue on her and she knows this isn’t going to last too long.

Every time, without fail, fucking Harry like this gets Louis ridiculously wet. She isn’t sure if it’s just how Harry reacts, or what they do, but it turns Louis on. She ruts down into Harry’s eager mouth, moans falling from her lips. She grips at the headboard for leverage, trying her hardest not to just grind down into Harry’s mouth.

She lifts up and Harry chases her, sucking on her clit. Louis moans, throwing her head back. 

“Gonna come, baby,” she warns. 

Harry makes a muffled noise and doubles her efforts. Louis comes hard, clutching the headboard so tightly she thinks that it’s going to crack. Her thighs tremble around Harry’s head with the intensity of her orgasm. Her breathing is heavy as she finally moves off Harry’s face and curls up next to her, kissing her hotly. It’s all tongue and absolutely filthy and Louis wouldn’t have it any other way.

Eventually their kisses slow into sleepy pecks. 

“We need new sheets,” Harry mumbles, her nose crinkling. “You call house-keeping, I’m going to have another shower.”

With far more energy than Louis thinks Harry as the right to have, she springs off the bed and rushes for the bathroom. Louis gapes after her, completely stunned. She can hear Harry’s giggles over the sound of the shower starting and she huffs. 

She reaches over the side of the bed and calls down to reception to request fresh bed linen, and is told someone will be there right away. She hastily picks up the strap-on and carries it to the bathroom with her to wash later. The last thing she needs is house-keeping to see their sex toys.

It takes a moment, but Louis eventually finds a dressing gown that she slings over her naked body. She waits until house-keeping knocks on the door and lets them in before joining Harry in the shower, laughing into Harry’s damp skin, and grinning from ear to ear.

“You, my love, are the worst.”

“Learned it from the best,” Harry teases, kissing Louis soundly on the lips.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi again. If you've got this far, I hope you enjoyed this part. ♥  
> Please leave me a comment if you liked it. I love comments so very much a lot. ♥
> 
>  
> 
> rebloggable post on my [tumblr](http://star55.tumblr.com/post/182695993496)


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Again, tags have been updated to reflect the upcoming chapter.
> 
> Massive thank yous to Jay and Leah for the cheerleading, and to Jada for the beta read. It is very much appreciated. ♥

~*~  
_Harry_

“Niall, Zayn, Lottie, Fizzy, and Kendall are all in,” Harry says, flopping onto the bed next to Louis, who is packing their things into suitcases.

“Are in what?” Louis asks, glancing up at Harry from her task.

“To walk in Sophia’s show!” Harry exclaims. She pokes Louis’ side. “I just got off the phone with Kendall. She’s excited to surprise Eleanor.”

Louis gives her a smile. “That’s nice, love. El will be thrilled.”

Harry beams. “I hope so,” she says, moving to sit up on the bed instead. She picks up a pair of knickers that haven’t been folded yet and starts to fold them. 

“Are you excited?” Louis asks, pushing some clothes over to Harry, undoubtedly for her to fold them, too.

Harry nods. “Yeah,” she says, “I really am. It’ll be fun to do this for Sophia. Plus, all of her clothes are absolutely to _die_ for. She has good taste.”

“That probably comes with years of being a model,” Louis replies. 

Harry hums her agreement. She keeps folding their clothes to pack into their suitcases. They leave Milan tomorrow to go back home to England. She’s looking forward to it, to seeing her mum, and to sleep in her own bed, but she’d be lying if she said she wasn’t going to miss this. Miss having Louis all to herself (almost all to herself, her mind corrects). 

They’ve had fun, though. Harry’s definitely had a lot of fun. She can’t believe how much they’ve managed to get done while they were away. It seems like forever ago that they were in Paris watching the opera. She sighs to herself, missing it all already.

“What’s the sigh for, love?” Louis asks, adding the pile of clothes to the suitcase.

“Nothing,” Harry says on another sigh. “I’m just going to miss this, is all.”

Louis gives her a small smile. “Me too.”

They keep packing until almost everything is in their suitcases. There’s just a few things left to pack and then that’s it. Their holiday is officially over. And it’s back to the real world they go. Harry barely bites back another sigh at the thought. 

“What should we do tonight?” she asks, getting off the bed. Louis zips up their suitcases and stows them on the floor out of the way.

“You mean you’re not exhausted after cycling down the canals all day?” Louis asks, an amused smile on her lips.

Harry shakes her head. “Nope,” she replies, popping the ‘p’. 

“Dinner, of course,” Louis begins. “And then maybe we can go to the cinema? We haven’t done that in a while.”

Harry grins. “Sounds perfect.”

“I wonder if _Inside Out_ is still playing,” Louis muses. “The twins were telling me about it when I talked to them the other day.”

Harry unlocks her phone and thumbs across the screen, looking for local movie listings. “If not, let’s watch _Ant-Man_.” She keeps scrolling until she finds a cinema that they’re close to. 

“The previews for that look good,” Louis says. “Let’s just watch that instead.”

Harry looks up. “If you’re sure?”

Louis nods. “I’m sure.”

Harry grins at her. She gives Louis a quick kiss on the lips. “I’d better get changed.”

She skips over to the clothes she has left out and changes into something a little fun and cute. She reaches for the choker necklace that she wore out clubbing in Amsterdam and slips it on. It sits snugly against her skin and Harry grins at her reflection. She gathers her hair up into a ponytail and secures it with a hair tie. 

As she wanders to the bathroom to put some make-up on, in the reflection of the mirror, she sees Louis take off her shirt to get change. Harry stops, unable to keep from staring for those few seconds when she’s faced with Louis’ back. She takes in the curve of Louis’ spine, the dimples at the base of it, the swell of her incredible arse. Harry _loves_ that arse. She would spend an eternity worshiping it if she could. She would spend an eternity worshiping _Louis_ if she could. She bites her lip and shakes her head. She’d get nothing done if all she ever did was stare at Louis. More often than she’d like to admit, that’s what she wants to do with her time. Louis is the kind of person to just sit and admire what she’s like. It’s something Harry will _never_ tire of doing.

“You look cute,” Louis says as she steps into the bathroom behind Harry. She reaches out and places both hands on Harry’s hips from behind and squeezes softly. “I like your choker.”

Harry grins, their gazes locking in the mirror. “Thanks,” she replies. “I really like it.”

Louis drops a kiss on the side of Harry’s neck and her eyes automatically close at the contact. She lets go sooner than Harry would like, and picks up her own lipstick. She swipes it across her lips with a practiced ease that Harry admires. 

“What? Do I have lipstick on my teeth?” Louis asks after a moment and Harry realises that she’s been staring. She shakes her head and gently cups Louis’ face in her hands.

“No,” she says softly, “just staring at the love of my life.” The absolute fondness and love that crosses Louis’ expression makes Harry feel like her ribcage is too small in her chest. She gently presses their lips together, careful of both of their freshly applied lipsticks.

“I love you so much,” Louis whispers, her hands coming up to rest on Harry’s hips again. She loops her hands low around Harry’s waist and presses in closer. 

“I love you too,” Harry returns. She wraps her arms around Louis’ shoulders, hugging her for a few long moments. Louis gives the best cuddles – she doesn’t want to let go. 

Eventually, they make their way down to the hotel’s restaurant and are seated immediately. Louis thanks the host and accepts their menus. She passes one to Harry and flicks her own open. 

Harry glances around at the people occupying the restaurant already. It’s mostly full, save a few tables that she’s sure will be occupied soon. Several of the guests look _very_ formal and Harry feels significantly underdressed. She voices her concerns to Louis who takes her hand and squeezes it.

“Love,” she begins, “you look beautiful. It doesn’t matter that you’re not wearing a formal dress or suit, we’re just having dinner and then going to the cinema.”

Harry’s lips quirk upwards. “Can’t really imagine sitting in a formal dress at the movies.”

Louis grins. “I can’t imagine doing that, either.”

Harry feels instantly better. She turns her attention to her menu and tries to find something that she would like.

She’s had so many delicious things to try while travelling Europe, and she’s made it her mission to try something as local as she can, but sometimes Harry just craves her Mum’s Sunday roast. She’s thinking about that still when their server comes back around to take their orders and she gives him a sheepish look. She glances at her menu and finds the first thing that looks good and orders it.

“You alright, love?”

Harry nods and picks up her glass of water to have a sip of. “Yeah,” she replies, “just got distracted thinking about Mum’s Sunday roast.”

“Ooh,” Louis says, her tongue darting out of her mouth to lick her lips. “Reckon she’ll make us one when we get home? I’m dying to have Yorkshire pudding.”

Harry grins. “I’ll ask her.” She unlocks her phone and taps out a text to her mum. She gets an immediate response of ‘See you on Sunday, then!’ from Anne that leaves her grinning. “We’re due over on Sunday.”

Louis beams. “Aces.”

Dinner is delicious, as usual. Harry feels happily full by the time they finish eating. And the one glass of wine she had during dinner makes her skin tingle happily. She walks down the street with Louis’ hand in her own, swinging their hands between them. 

They take the long route to the cinema, taking in the beauty that is Milan at night time. Harry stops every now and then to just admire the things they pass by. She can’t believe how utterly lucky she is to be experiencing all of this. And experiencing it all with Louis makes it all the better in her mind.

They get tickets to see _Ant-Man_ and find a spot in the semi-crowded cinema. Harry struggles to hold the popcorn in one hand while they sit down. 

The movie is funny, sweet, and makes Harry laugh out loud on more than one occasion. She adores Cassie, who is clearly the best character ever, she decides. By the end of the movie, she’s glad that they chose this to do as their last night in Milan.

“Is it strange that I don’t want to leave, but I’m also dying to get home and sleep in our bed?” Harry asks later that night when she and Louis are getting ready for bed.

Louis shakes her head. “It’s not strange. I feel the exact same.”

She sighs with relief. “Good.”

“As much fun as these three months have been, I miss home.”

“Me too.”

“But these have been the best three months of my life, so I don’t want it to end, either.”

Harry beams at Louis and knee-walks across the bed to where Louis’ standing on the carpet. “Me either.” She leans in and kisses Louis slowly, enjoying their closeness. It’s odd, she thinks, but she feels even closer to Louis after this holiday, than she’s ever felt before.

~*~

Harry regrets leaving Milan.

There’s a drill going in the next room and she wants to throw it out of the window. They’d only been home for two days before the work started in the spare room on their floor. She knows that it needs to be done as soon as possible, as they’re going to have Lottie and Félicité staying with them, but right at this second, Harry wants the drilling to _stop_.

As if the drill heard her sharp thoughts, it turns off. She sighs in relief and returns to rolling out the pastry she’s making. The kitchen is a bit of a mess, but that’s to be expected when she’s making pastry from scratch. Louis is out at the office, checking in on things. Harry isn’t expecting her home until much, _much_ later. Which gives Harry the entire day to make an apple tart for Niall and Zayn who just moved into their new flat.

They still haven’t given her the address yet, though, which is somewhat annoying, but Harry is happy for them. She’s excited for this step in their lives, and as a married couple. She just wants the best for them.

She also figures that once she sees what they do and don’t have in their flat, she’ll be able to buy them a more suitable house-warming gift. But both Niall and Zayn love Anne’s apple tart, and this is her recipe so Harry thinks that she’s starting off on the right foot at least.

The drilling starts again.

Harry grits her teeth and grips the rolling pin in her hand so tightly that her knuckles turn white. She sighs and tries to drown it out by singing along to her baking playlist. 

Eventually, she gets the tart in the oven and starts cleaning up while it’s cooking. 

“Uh, miss?”

Harry looks up to see Sam, one of the construction workers, standing in the doorway to her kitchen. “Yes, sorry. Hi.” She dusts her hands off on her apron and gives Sam her full attention. 

He gives her a confused look but opens his mouth to speak. “I wanted to know where you wanted the framework?”

“Oh!” Harry exclaims. She thought that Louis had told them exactly what she wanted and where she wanted it. Harry is more than happy to help, though. She has spare copies of the plans. She follows Sam to the spare room and nods, taking everything in.

“Over in that corner, please.”

“And you want the cabinet along this wall?” Sam asks, showing her his copy of the plans.

Harry nods. “Yes, please.”

“Alright, you got it.”

“I’ll be in the kitchen if any of you need me.”

“Just where a woman should be, hey?”

“I don’t appreciate that kind of comment,” Harry says.

“What kind of comment? It’s just a joke,” Sam says, rolling his eyes at her. “Lighten up. Go back to the kitchen where a good girl like you belongs.”

Harry blinks. Her skin prickles at the blasé way he makes such sexist comments. “Please leave.”

“Excuse me?” Sam asks.

“Get out of my house.”

Sam looks like he’s about to say something, his eyes narrowed in her direction. “We’ve got a contract, _pet_.”

Harry physically steps back from him. “And I’m sure my lawyer will get us out of it. But I want you out of my house right now.”

“Alright, boys, let’s go.”

“They can stay,” Harry says, placing her hands on her hips. “ _You_ can leave.”

“I’m not leaving my crew here,” Sam says, glaring down at her. 

Without looking at the crew, Harry opens her mouth, “I’ll pay you all double to stay.”

A low whistle comes out of someone’s mouth. They’re already being paid handsomely for doing this job so quickly, and each and every single one of the crew members knows that being paid double would benefit them incredibly. 

Sam levels Harry with a look that he probably thinks is intimidating. “If you think my crew will be bought with your _dyke_ money, you’ve got another thing coming, _pet_.”

“Then you’ll _all_ be hearing from my _dyke_ lawyer. And I’ll sue you for every single penny you’re worth.” 

Even though her heart is pounding in her chest, and her hands are shaking slightly, there is no way that Harry is going to let this guy intimidate her. 

The workers have all stopped and are watching the exchange between Sam and Harry. 

“You lot had better come with me or you’re all fired,” Sam says, addressing his crew. They all unplug their tools down and file out of the room.

Harry isn’t even disappointed.

“Fucking dyke,” Sam says pointedly. He isn’t even _trying_ to be subtle about his disgusting behaviour now. 

It takes everything that Harry has in her to not react. She grits her teeth and glares at Sam all the way to the front door.

“You need to learn some respect before you step foot in another woman’s house again,” Harry says evenly. She slams the door shut in his face and flips the lock before he can retort. 

With her entire body shaking, Harry makes it to the bedroom before collapsing onto the floor. She sighs and takes deep breaths. She hates that she was made to feel so uncomfortable in her own home. She and Louis are paying these people to do a _job_ not to comment on their lives, or add their misogynistic comments into any conversation.

She sits there so long that the smoke alarm goes off. She scrambles to get up, almost tripping over. There’s smoke billowing out of the oven and she quickly turns it off before opening the oven door. The tart is black. 

_Perfect_ , she thinks sadly. She checks that the kitchen window is open and quickly turns on the extractor fan to suck out the smoke. 

The smoke alarm is still going when Harry picks up her phone. She dials Louis’ number and brings the phone to her ear. 

“Hey, love, I might be longer than I thought,” Louis says when the call connects.

“I need you to come home,” Harry says. 

“What’s wrong? Is that the smoke alarm I hear?”

“Yes, it is,” Harry replies. She wafts the tea towel in her hand to try and clear the air. She hopes that it clears out soon. The alarm finally turns off by itself.

“I’ll be right there.”

Harry sags to the floor next to the open oven, staring at her burnt apple tart. She glares at it, like she can blame it for her anger and hurt, but it just sits there, on the shelf, being all burnt and inedible. 

Sooner than she anticipates, Louis is home and calling out her name.

“Harry? Love where are you?”

“Kitchen,” Harry calls out.

“What’s going on? Are you hurt?”

“Not physically,” Harry replies. “I burnt the tart. It was a really good tart, too.”

“Oh, love,” Louis says, kneeling down on the tiles next to Harry. “What’s going on, sweetheart?”

Harry relays the events to Louis, who looks as angry as Harry felt by the time she’s finished. Now, though, she’s just tired and emotionally drained. 

“Don’t worry,” Louis says, cupping Harry’s face in her hands. She kisses Harry softly on the lips. “We’ll sort it all out. Promise.”

Harry nods.

“You did the right thing, Harry,” Louis says firmly. “You know that’s exactly what I would’ve done, too. I don’t want anyone like that working in our house making those kinds of comments.”

Harry nods again. “I just feel _so crap_.”

“I know,” Louis says. She squeezes Harry’s hands gently in her own. “Let’s get all of this cleaned up and get another tart started, alright? I’ll look for another construction crew tomorrow and we’ll deal with the legal side later.”

Thankfully, Louis just sits there with her and holds her hand until Harry starts to feel a little better.

“You should hire lesbians,” Harry says after a while. “There has to be some lesbians out there that like building and construction, right?”

Louis grins and kisses Harry’s cheek. “That, my love, is a _wonderful_ idea. I’ll get right on that once we’ve cleaned up.”

Harry gives her a small smile and picks up the tart with her oven mitt to scrape it off the plate and into the bin. 

“Thank you,” Harry says after they’ve done the dishes. “For coming home. And for not thinking I was blowing this out of proportion.”

Louis dries her hands off on a tea towel. “Harry,” she begins, “I know that now it’s passed, it feels like you overreacted, but that’s the way we’ve been programmed to think from a young age – that men are right, and that our feelings and thoughts don’t matter. What he said, _all_ comments, not just the dyke ones, is disgusting. I don’t employ people to bring their shitty personal views and attitudes into my work space, or _our_ home space. And he made you feel unsafe. Which is _not_ okay. At all.”

Harry nods and rubs her hand over her face. “I don’t know what I’d do without you.”

Louis gives her a soft, loving smile. “You did fantastic without me.”

“Huh,” Harry says, stumped. “I guess I did.” The pride that surges in her chest lasts for the rest of the afternoon.

~*~

“ _Just_ trust me,” Niall says exasperatedly. “ _Get in the lift, push the button for the thirteenth floor and_ wait.”

Harry adjusts her phone against her ear. She’s had to call Niall to ask where she lives, and now Niall is sending her on a wild goose chase in her own building!

After they had cleaned up the kitchen, and once Harry felt okay, Louis went back to work, and Harry made another apple tart. She was thankful that she had enough apples left over to make a second. Now she just wants to find out where Niall and Zayn’s new flat is and take the tart to them, not traipse around the thirteenth floor (that she honestly has never visited before, oops) with a still warm tart in her hand. At this rate, it’s going to be cold and Niall won’t enjoy it as much.

Harry pushes the button for the thirteenth floor and waits for the lift to arrive. Not only had she got all the way down to the lobby before Niall answered her call, but now she has to go back up again. This is ridiculous.

“Alright, I’m here,” Harry says as the lift doors open. She steps out and looks around. It’s a really nice floor, she thinks. Very spacious with only three flats on this level. She figures they must be nice and big on the inside. But then she has nothing to compare it to, since she’s never been on this floor before.

“ _Stay there_ ,” Niall says. The call disconnects and Harry glances at her phone, her mouth open. She’s about to call Niall back when a door to her left opens.

Niall’s head pokes around the door frame. “Hey!” she exclaims. 

Harry blinks at her. “What?”

“We live here!” 

“ _What_?” Harry repeats.

Zayn appears behind Niall, peering around her at Harry. “I thought I could smell apple tart.”

“Come on in!” Niall says cheerily.

Harry forces herself to make her feet work and step forwards. The door is closed behind her and she looks around at the beautiful flat. “You live here?”

Zayn and Niall both nod. “Just moved in last week,” Niall says. She reaches for the plate in Harry’s hand and she hurries away before Harry can register what’s going on. 

“Mum and Dad bought this for us as a wedding present,” Zayn says. She takes Harry’s handbag from her and puts it in the cupboard by the door. “What do you think?” 

Harry follows Zayn over to the sofas and sits down. Her expression turns from shock to a massive grin. “This is _awesome_!” she exclaims. “My two besties living in the same building as me? This is a dream come true!”

Zayn laughs and hugs Harry. “We were worried you wouldn’t want us living so close.”

“As if!” Harry says. She hugs Zayn tightly and only separates from her when Niall comes into the lounge room with two forks, one in her mouth, and a chunk of the tart already missing off the side. 

She sits next to Zayn and passes her the other fork. “This is delicious, by the way. Did Anne make it?”

Harry shakes her head. “No, I did.”

Niall grins around the fork in her mouth. “Tastes just like Anne’s does.”

Pride blooms in Harry’s chest. “Thank you.”

Niall moans around her fork, her eyes closing. Harry takes this as the highest praise. 

“So, what do you think?” Zayn asks after she’s swallowed her mouthful of tart.

“It’s perfect,” Harry replies. “I can come visit you whenever I want! And you can pop upstairs if you need us, too! This is so awesome.” She sighs happily and leans back into the sofa. “Now what else do you need? I want to get you a decent house-warming gift.”

“Not much,” Zayn says. “We’ve got the essentials already. And since Mum and Dad didn’t pay full price for the flat, they were able to help us out with whitegoods and a bed.”

“The mattress is absolute _heaven_ ,” Niall adds. She forks some more of the tart into her mouth. “You didn’t want any of this, did you?” she asks sheepishly.

Harry shakes her head. “It’s all yours. Well, both of you.”

Niall grins and digs in for some more. “I’m going to have to tell Anne that you’re rivalling her tart making skills.”

Harry beams again. “I’m making one to take over for our Sunday roast. She’ll be able to taste it then.”

“Ooh, Sunday roast. Can we tag along?” Niall asks.

“I’ll have to ask mum, but it should be okay,” Harry replies.

“I’ll text Anne later,” Niall says. “She can never say no to me.”

Zayn nods. “It’s true,” she says. “Anne came over the day we moved in and gave us this beautiful bed sheet set _and_ absolutely incredible monogramed towel set.”

“Mum was here before I was?” Harry asks incredulously. 

Niall nods. “Yeah, she offered to let us stay at her house until we found somewhere, so we told her that we didn’t need to the day before we got back to England as Trisha and Yaser had found us a place.”

Harry can’t help but pout. “I wanted to be your first guest.” She can’t even keep the petulance out of her voice.

“Does it help if I say that you’re the first guest that _counts_?” Niall offers.

Harry nods. “Yes.”

After Zayn and Niall have had their fill of the apple tart, they give Harry a tour of their flat. Their bedroom is quite large, and a king size bed sits in the centre of the room, the headboard against the wall. Fairy lights adorn the top of it, which Harry thinks will look beautiful at night when they’re turned on. Their ensuite bathroom isn’t as big as Louis’, but it’s a decent size, Harry thinks. There’s a large walk in wardrobe that has Niall and Zayn’s stuff in it already. 

There’s an office, that Harry isn’t even sure they’d use, but it’s big enough to put a bed in if they want to change it around. And there’s a room that has an easel already set up with drop sheets on the floor and artist supplies strewn around. She’s glad that Zayn has somewhere like that for herself. 

There’s two guest bedrooms, smaller in size than the master room, and between them a bathroom. Harry is impressed. 

“Nice, innit?” Zayn says, hooking her chin over Harry’s shoulder as Harry takes in the utterly gorgeous kitchen. 

Harry nods. “It is.”

“There’s also a laundry, too,” Niall says. She takes Harry’s hand and leads her to the laundry where there are clothes being washed in the automatic machine. 

“Look at us being all grown up and proper,” Zayn says with a grin. “Doing our own washing and having our own house.”

Harry sniffs, overwhelmed with emotion. “I’m so happy for you both.” She grabs them both in a hug and holds on tightly. 

Both Niall and Zayn hug her back just as tightly, squashing as close together as they possibly can. They stay like that, standing in the cramped laundry with the noisy washing machine gurgling behind them. 

“We’re going to smash it as newlyweds,” Niall says, her breath hot on Harry’s neck. She can’t help but grin.

“Yeah, you are,” she agrees, unable to keep the fondness out of her voice even if she tried.

~*~

Harry buys them Scrabble as a house-warming gift. She grins as she hands over the wrapped present and laughs when Niall rolls her eyes and Zayn gives her a warm kiss on the cheek.

“It’s _perfect_ ,” Zayn says. 

“Here, I’ll take your bag,” Niall says. She takes Harry’s overnight bag off her and wanders to one of the spare rooms. 

It’s a week later, the spare room in her and Louis’ flat has finally been converted into their… well their sex room. She mentally cringes when she thinks of calling it that. But she doesn’t want to call it their play room lest she sound like the fifty shades garbage that’s out in the world. But it’s where they’re going to safely do anything with heavier kinks, or to do specific role playing. 

It’s Thursday and Louis has driven over to Doncaster to bring back Lottie and Félicité on the Friday after Félicité finishes school. Sophia’s show is on Saturday and Kendall gets in tomorrow, so Harry will be busy with helping her set up her surprise for Eleanor. 

But now she’s having her first ever sleepover at Niall and Zayn’s and she couldn’t be more excited if she tried.

“C’mon, let’s play a round before dinner,” Zayn says, nodding her head towards the lounge room. Harry follows, making herself comfortable on the floor on one side of the coffee table.

“I’m just gonna read,” Niall says. “I’m almost finished this book and it’s right at a good bit.”

Harry grins at her. “Go ahead,” she replies. “Zayn and I can play against each other.”

Niall curls up on the sofa, her Kindle in hand. Zayn shakes the bag of letters and they choose one each to decide who goes first. Harry wins with the letter E to Zayn’s letter S and she chooses seven letters to start with.

Their game is fun. Harry loves playing Scrabble, and she’s glad that Zayn wanted to play it straight away. Zayn has a ridiculously good poker face, though, which Harry both loves and hates. She gapes at the board as Zayn uses all seven of her letters and jots down her score, all without outwardly expressing how awesome her move was. 

“Holy crap,” Harry whispers. 

Zayn then grins at her and winks. “I’ve been waiting for that L for ages to pop up.”

Harry pokes her tongue out at Zayn in response, unable to articulate how she feels. “I mean, that was a good move but _ner_!” she pokes her tongue out again and Zayn cracks up laughing. 

“Thanks,” Zayn says with a grin. “I need to pee, let’s take a break.”

Harry nods. She puts her letters face down on the coffee table and gets up, stretching her legs. She wanders into the kitchen to pour them all drinks. She takes Niall’s to her and gets a grunt in response. She’s thoroughly amused that Niall is so entranced in the book she’s reading. 

“Thanks for the drink,” Zayn says as she joins Harry in the kitchen. 

“Anytime.” 

They wander back to the lounge room, where Niall is now spread out on the sofa, her attention still firmly on her book. 

The rest of the game goes quicker now that they have less letters to play with. And Harry isn’t surprised in the slightest when Zayn wins the game. She packs up the letters and secures the bag that they come in. 

“What do you want for dinner?” Zayn asks as she takes the box and puts it in the cabinet with their other board games. 

“Pizza!” Niall says. She hasn’t taken her eyes off her Kindle at all. Harry grins, knowing that Niall still picks up any and all conversations about food, even when they’re not directed at her.

“Pizza is good,” Harry agrees. 

“Cool, I’ll order some now.” Zayn unlocks her phone and quickly opens up the app for their favourite pizza place. 

Both Harry and Niall interject with extras they want while Zayn taps away on the screen of her phone, her brow furrowed in concentration.

“Done. Should be half an hour.”

“Good,” Niall says. “Go away, I’ve got one chapter left and you’re both distracting me.”

Zayn rolls her eyes, but her smile shows that she understands exactly what Niall is feeling. She takes Harry’s hand and leads her to one of the two guest rooms. Harry figures this is the one she’s staying in since her overnight bag is sitting at the end of the bed.

“Oh my god!” she exclaims. “I can’t believe you put mints on the pillows! That’s so awesome.”

“It was Niall’s idea,” Zayn says as she sits on the end of the bed. “I think she got it from Louis.”

Harry grins and pops the wrapped mint on the nightstand to have later. “I absolutely love it.”

She climbs onto the bed next to Zayn, tucking her bare feet underneath her. 

“How’s it been? Living together?”

Zayn nods. “It’s been good. We’re already used to each other’s habits from not only being away, but from how often Niall would stay over beforehand. So it’s not that different. It’s just… quieter.”

Harry cocks her head to the side, waiting for Zayn to elaborate.

Zayn shifts, folding her knees up to wrap her arms around them. “The girls were always so noisy at my place,” she starts, “so that’s a change. But also, Niall’s been a little more reserved since the wedding.”

Harry’s heart aches at the comment. 

“Not with me, of course,” Zayn continues. “But just… she’s not as _loud_ as she used to be. I think it’s affecting her more than she lets on.”

“Understandable,” Harry replies softly. She reaches over and places her hand on top of Zayn’s. 

“But apart from that, living together is pretty great,” Zayn says, the corners of her lips tugging upwards. “I really love being married. I get to wake up with the love of my life in my arms every single day.” Harry grins.

“It’s pretty great, isn’t it?”

Zayn nods. “The downside is that I’m stuck with her farts forever now, too.”

Harry cracks up laughing. She topples backwards and settles back against the pillows. “I get it. Louis’ are the _worst_ after she’s had baked beans. I try to keep them out of the house but they keep making their way back in.”

Zayn shuffles and moves to lie down next to Harry. She props her head on Harry’s shoulder and laces their fingers together. 

“So uni starts up soon,” Zayn says softly after a few minutes. “I going to Goldsmiths.”

Harry gasps. “Zayn! That’s _huge_!”

“I’m nervous as fuck,” Zayn replies. “I found out the day we got back here and I smoked my entire stash of weed.”

Harry turns her head to look at Zayn a little better. “It’s normal to be nervous,” she says. “But this is your _dream_. And Goldsmiths is an incredible uni – I think you’ll do really well there.”

“Thanks, Haz,” Zayn says. 

Harry kisses the top of Zayn’s head, lingering for a few seconds. She is so incredibly proud of Zayn for everything. She’s so glad that Zayn is going to go to university to do what she loves. 

“Finished!” Niall exclaims, barging into the room. She all but flings herself onto the bed on top of Harry and Zayn. She burrows in close, wiggling between them until Zayn huffs and moves over to accommodate her. 

“Good book?” Harry asks as she shifts onto her side, propping her head up on her hand. 

Niall nods emphatically. “One of the best I’ve ever read. And that includes the Harry Potter series.”

“That’s some high praise right there,” Zayn comments. She closes the gap between them and kisses Niall soundly on the lips.

“When’s dinner? I’m starving,” Niall asks, breaking the kiss with Zayn. 

“It should be here any minute now,” Harry says, picking up her phone to check the time. 

She sees a text from Louis saying that she’s arrived safely in Doncaster, complete with an attached photo of Ernest’s foot trying to make its way into Louis’ mouth. She grins at her screen and sends back a response. 

“Pizza’s here,” Zayn says a moment later, looking at the screen of her own phone. “I’ll go down and get it.”

“You’re a goddess!” Niall exclaims as Zayn gets up off the bed. Zayn leans over and kisses Niall softly on the lips. The sight makes Harry’s heart melt. 

“Best wife ever, honestly,” Niall says as she hears the front door close. She gets up off the bed and holds her hand out for Harry to take. 

They make their way back through the house. Harry refills their drinks while Niall gets out some napkins. They take it all into the lounge room and Harry sits down at the coffee table again, in the same spot she was in before. 

Zayn walks in with two pizza boxes stacked on top of each other, along with a few other items on top. She sets them all down on the coffee table and Niall bounces in her spot. 

“This smells amazing,” she says, making grabby hands at the topmost box. 

Both pizza boxes get opened, along with the garlic bread, and they all dig in. It’s the first pizza Harry’s had since Italy, and while it’s not on the same level as Italian pizza, it just tastes _amazing_ to her. She moans around her first slice, wiggling happily in her spot. The room is silent except for their chewing, all of them too wrapped up in their food to engage in conversation. 

By the time Harry’s picking up her third slice, Niall is on her fourth, one hand holding her pizza slice, the other a slice of the garlic bread. Harry grins and snaps a photo of Niall in her element. Niall laughs when she shows it to her and tells her she needs to post it online. 

“Once I’ve finished eating I will,” Harry promises. 

That seems to satisfy Niall, who keeps eating her food. Harry licks her lips as she reaches for a piece of garlic bread, taking a bite. It’s still warm and tastes absolutely superb. It’s ridiculous how much she likes bread, she thinks.

All three of them curl up on the sofa together to settle in to watch some movies. They debate over what to watch, finally settling on _The Hunger Games_. It’s a movie that never fails to make Harry cry, especially when Rue dies. She feels so much for the little girl, and for what Katniss goes through, too. 

“If _The Hunger Games_ were about eating food, I’d win,” Niall says when the movie ends. 

“No doubt about it,” Zayn agrees with a grin, and Harry nods. It’s no competition there.

“Want to watch _Catching Fire_?” Harry asks. 

“Let’s take a break first, I have to pee,” Niall says. She gets up and disappears to the toilet while Harry cleans up the remaining mess from their pizzas. 

Zayn follows her into the kitchen, her own hands full of rubbish. She sets everything down and Harry sorts through it as Zayn microwaves a bag of popcorn for them to share. 

They’re all settled back on the sofa when Niall comes back into the lounge room, frowning at her phone.

“What’s up?” Zayn asks.

“Huh? Oh, nothing,” Niall says. She locks her phone and sets it down on the coffee table. They start playing the movie, Niall reaching for a handful of popcorn.

A few minutes into the movie, Niall’s phone buzzes on the table. Harry looks between the device and Niall, biting her lip.

“Are you going to answer that?” she asks.

“Nope,” Niall says, shaking her head. She stuffs a handful of popcorn into her mouth, keeping her gaze fixed firmly on the television screen.

Harry gives Zayn a worried look but turns her attention back to the television as well. 

The phone keeps buzzing. Zayn pauses the movie and picks up Niall’s phone.

“It’s Greg,” she says. “Don’t you want to speak to him?”

“It’s not Greg,” Niall replies, not even bothering to look in the phone’s direction. “It’s Maura. She’s calling me from Greg’s phone because I blocked her and Bobby’s numbers.”

Zayn sets the phone down. “Babes, what’s going on?”

Niall sighs and puts the bag of popcorn on the coffee table. A few kernels fall out. “Maura’s calling because Bobby gambled all of their money on some stupid horse race and lost. They want to _borrow_ money off me. I answered the call because I thought it was Greg, and hung up because it wasn’t.”

“Oh, babes,” Zayn says softly. 

Niall shakes her head, making a scoffing sound. She gets up and starts pacing the length of the lounge room. “So they cut me off, tell me I’m not their daughter anymore because I married a woman and _now_ they want to know me because they want money? They saw some Instagram posts I made about our new place and think that we’re loaded or something now, and they think they can just call up and I’d give them money?” She scoffs again, her hands clenching and unclenching by her sides. Harry feels absolutely useless.

“Wasn’t it enough that they _stole_ my money from me when they closed my account after they disowned me? I had tens of _thousands_ of pounds in that account and they just took it! Christ, how quickly did they burn through it to be asking me _now_ for more money?

“I bloody thought that my own brother was calling me to congratulate me on getting married, you know?” Niall continues, her pacing growing more and more frantic. “I haven’t bloody heard from him since Barcelona, where he specifically said ‘ _Nialler, I don’t want to get in the middle of this_ ’. But he’s just being an absolute wanker!

“He’s picked sides! He picked _their_ side,” Niall rambles. “And he has the fucking gall to let them contact me after he knew – he _knew_ that they disowned me. And he didn’t even fucking call me to ask how _I_ was.”

She stops pacing and lifts her head up, facing towards the ceiling. Even from here, Harry can see the tears falling down her cheeks. Zayn gets up and wraps her arms around Niall in a tight hug. She whispers something that Harry can’t hear. But she can tell that it’s in Urdu.

They fall silent after a few moments and Harry can hear Niall sobbing into Zayn’s chest. She gets up as quietly as she can and makes her way to the guest room she’s staying in to give them some privacy. 

Her heart aches for Niall. She hates that she can’t do anything for her to fix it, to make it stop hurting. She bites her lip and sits down on the bed, fidgeting with her phone. She gets up again and gets her toiletry bag out and makes her way to the shower. 

When she gets out, the lounge room is silent and Zayn and Niall’s bedroom door is closed. Harry worries her bottom lip between her teeth. She cleans up the mess they’ve made, turns off the television and the lights and makes her way back to her room. She climbs into bed and shoots a text to Louis. Her phone buzzes to life in her hand a moment later.

“ _Tell me everything_ ,” Louis requests simply. Just hearing her voice makes Harry’s heart feel a little lighter. She relays everything that happened, falling silent when she’s finished. 

“I don’t know what to do,” Harry says a little brokenly.

“ _Just be there for her, love_ ,” Louis replies. “ _You’re their best friend. Your friendship is what they need right now, especially Niall_.”

Harry sighs. “I just wish I could fix it,” she says sadly. “Niall has _the_ biggest heart ever and she doesn’t deserve to be treated like this.”

“ _No, she doesn’t_ ,” Louis agrees. “ _But she needs to know that you’re there for her, alright? She has Zayn, she knows that, but it’s always nice to know that you’re there for her unconditionally. That you love her._ ”

“I do love her,” Harry echoes. “So much.”

“ _Just keep telling her that. You’re a fantastic friend, Harry. Both Niall and Zayn know that, too_.”

“Thanks, Lou. You always know what to say.”

She hears the huff of Louis’ laugh and her heart aches a little more, wishing that Louis was there with her. 

“Will you stay on the phone until I fall asleep?” Harry asks.

“ _Of course, love_ ,” Louis replies. 

Harry shifts, getting comfortable under the covers. She whispers good night to Louis, who says it back and she closes her eyes. She wishes that Louis was there to hold her – it’s the first time in what feels like forever that they’ve slept apart, and she’s really noticing it. 

When she wakes, it’s still dark. Her phone is off – Louis must have disconnected the call after Harry had fallen asleep. She picks it up and touches the home button. There’s a text from Louis just reading ‘ _I love you_ ’ and it makes Harry smile. 

She gets up and goes for a wee, before wandering through to the kitchen to grab a drink. She almost jumps out of her skin when Niall appears behind her.

“Sorry,” Niall mumbles. 

“It’s alright,” Harry says, her hand on her chest. She bites her lip, wondering if she should ask what she’s thinking. In the end, she decides to just do it. “How are you feeling?”

“Pretty shit,” Niall replies. “Sorry that our night was a bust.”

Harry steps closer to Niall, running a hand down Niall’s arm. “It wasn’t a bust,” she begins. “I had an _incredible_ night with my two best friends. We watched movies, ate food, and played games. It was a pretty fantastic night.” Niall gives her a crooked smile. “The only dampener on our evening was some loser making my best friend cry.”

Niall steps into Harry’s open arms, burying her face in Harry’s neck. She holds onto Harry tightly, her breathing stuttering. Harry kisses the side of Niall’s head and just stands there, in the middle of the kitchen, hugging Niall. She doesn’t care how long they stand there, but she knows that it’s necessary. It’s one of the only things that she can do for Niall, and she’s going to bloody excel at it for as long as she needs to.

Niall pulls away, sniffing. 

“Do you want to talk about it?” Harry asks softly. She lifts her hands to Niall’s face, brushing away her tears with her thumbs. Niall shakes her head, but then nods. 

They make their way to the lounge room and curl up on the sofa together. Harry drapes a blanket over their bodies and reaches underneath it to take Niall’s hand in her own. She squeezes softly, reassuring Niall that she’s there. That she isn’t going anywhere.

“It’s been hard,” Niall begins eventually. “Everything’s hard these days.” She lets out a big sigh and rubs her face with her free hand. “Zayn’s been amazing through it all, of course. She’s the best. But she doesn’t get it. Yaser and Trisha love Zayn too much to ever consider disowning her like that.”

Harry stays silent, giving Niall’s hand little squeezes every now and then in comfort. 

“We all know how utterly selfish Bobby and Maura are, but I just… They’re my parents.”

Silence envelops them.

“May I speak candidly?”

Niall nods, turning to face Harry a little.

“Just because you share DNA with someone, it doesn’t make them family,” Harry begins. “Look at _Matilda_ –”

“Are you really going to talk about a kids movie?” Niall interrupts.

“You’re damn right I am,” Harry says emphatically. “Matilda knew that her parents were bad people. That she was nothing like them. And she was _six_ when they did the one and only right thing by her – letting her get adopted by Miss Honey. They didn’t understand her, just like Bobby and Maura never understood you. They didn’t get _anything_ about you. But instead of doing the right thing by you, they kept you there and made your life hell whenever they felt like it.

“And maybe you didn’t have a Miss Honey to adopt you and to help you know family love another way,” Harry continues, “but you have us. You have Zayn now. She’s your legal family. And honestly, that girl would move heaven and earth if you asked her to.”

Niall makes a soft noise that Harry can’t quite decipher.

“And me. You have me. You’ll _always_ have me, whether you’re living in the same building as me, or you’re on the other side of the planet, I am _always_ going to be in your life,” Harry says softly. “So _we_ are your Miss Honey, okay?”

Niall lets out a broken sob. Harry moves, crawling into Niall’s arms to hold her close.

“It hurts so much, Harry,” Niall whispers brokenly. “I just wanted them to love me.”

“Of course you did,” Harry says. “They’re your parents – all kids want their parents to love them. But it’s okay to cut them out of your life because it’s what’s best for _you_.”

Niall nods, her tears wetting Harry’s neck. “I just don’t know what to do anymore.”

Harry scratches softly at Niall’s scalp with her fingers. “Maybe you can get a restraining order against them? For continual harassment?”

“I don’t think I could do it,” Niall says, hiccupping once. “A part of me still hopes they’ll say that they were wrong, and that they want me in their lives. But they didn’t want me for the first eighteen years of my life, why would now be any different?”

Harry closes her eyes, her heart breaking in her chest for Niall. “Whatever you decide to do, Niall, I’ll be there with you, every step of the way.”

Niall lifts her head. “Thank you,” she says. She presses her lips to Harry’s in a wet kiss before dropping her head back onto Harry’s chest. 

Her breathing evens out after a short while, indicating that she’s fallen fast asleep. Harry keeps stroking her hair, trying to comfort Niall in the only way that she can. 

Eventually, Harry is able to wriggle out from underneath Niall and she braces herself, picking Niall up and making her way to the bedroom. Zayn is fast asleep still, thankfully not taking up the entire bed. Harry carefully deposits Niall under the covers and stands up, stretching her back out. 

She’s about to leave when she hears Niall rouse. 

“Stay,” Niall mumbles. 

Harry climbs into bed next to her and lets Niall burrow in her arms. She’s fast asleep again in seconds. Harry blinks, staring at the ceiling. She takes a shuddery breath and resumes her stroking of Niall’s hair.

~*~

Harry wakes to her boob being caressed and the back of her head being nuzzled into. She sighs and pushes back into the touch.

“What the fuck?”

Her eyes snap open and she rolls over, facing Zayn, who looks as stunned as Harry feels. She laughs and flops onto her back, raising her arms up to stretch them.

“Morning,” she mumbles.

“Where’s Niall?” Zayn asks, rubbing at her eyes. “And why are you in our bed?”

“I think the question is – how did you not know that you were grabbing my tits, not Niall’s?” Harry teases. 

Zayn pokes her tongue out in response. She rolls over and grabs her phone before sitting up straight. “ _Fuck_ ,” she says emphatically. 

“What?” Harry asks, her brow furrowing at Zayn’s tone. 

“Niall texted,” Zayn says. “She said she’s going to Bobby and Maura’s place.”

Both Harry and Zayn scramble out of bed, hastily dressing. They all but race down to the car park where Harry quickly gets behind the wheel and starts her car. She zips out of the parking lot and heads to Niall’s parents’ place.

It takes all of Harry’s willpower not to yell at traffic as they drive. Zayn is jiggling her knee frantically and it isn’t helping Harry’s nerves whatsoever. Finally, they pull up at their destination and they scramble to get out of the car. 

They spot Niall standing outside, staring at the house. Zayn all but throws herself at Niall, holding her tightly.

“What happened? Are you okay? Did they hurt you?” she asks in a rush.

Niall shakes her head. “I couldn’t bring myself to go in.”

Harry sighs with relief.

“They haven’t woke up yet, so they don’t know I’m out here, either.”

Silence lapses over them for a few long moments. Harry bites her lip, torn.

“Do you want to go inside?” Zayn asks softly. 

Niall stays silent, staring at the front door of the house that she semi grew up in. “No,” she eventually says. “I don’t.”

“Let’s go home, then,” Zayn says. She laces their fingers together and leads Niall back to Harry’s car.

They all clamber in and Harry takes a deep breath, her heart still pounding in her chest. She doesn’t even want to think about what would have happened if Bobby and Maura had realised that Niall was outside. All she knows is that Niall would’ve been the only one who ended up hurt.

“Let’s go out for breakfast,” Harry says as they’re driving away. 

From the back seat, Niall and Zayn both nod. “Sounds good,” Niall says. “I’m starving.”

Harry grins, the tightness in her chest loosening ever so slightly.

The perfect place comes to mind as Harry’s driving. She grins to herself as she heads towards an all too familiar little café. Even though she hasn’t been to it in a long time, it makes her heart happy to see it.

“Harry!” a voice exclaims as Harry walks through the door.

Harry beams. “Cait! It’s so good to see you!” she rounds the counter and accepts the hug from the older woman.

“Look at you!” Caitlin says. She cups Harry’s face in her hands, smiling at her. “So beautiful. And how’s Louis?”

“She’s good,” Harry replies. “We’re engaged now.” She shows off her ring proudly.

“I saw it in the paper,” Caitlin says. “Congratulations, sweetheart.”

Harry beams at her again. “Thank you. These are my friends Niall and Zayn. They’re newlyweds.”

“Welcome,” Caitlin says to Niall and Zayn, who are watching Harry with amusement. “Have a seat and we’ll get you ladies sorted.”

“Thanks, Cait,” Harry says, accepting the offered menus. She leads Niall and Zayn to a booth and they sit down. 

“Who’s that?” Niall asks. 

“That’s Caitlin,” Harry begins. “She and her wife, Ella, run this place. Louis came here all of the time during uni, and they kind of adopted each other.”

“That’s cool,” Zayn says. 

Caitlin approaches their booth after they’ve all looked through their menus and takes their order. Harry’s stomach grumbles when Caitlin turns her back and she laughs. 

“I’ll get Ella to go as fast as she can,” she says with a wink. Harry promptly flushes.

“This place is awesome,” Niall says. “How did I not know it existed?”

Harry shrugs. “London is odd like that.”

Their food doesn’t take too long to arrive, and soon Caitlin is setting down their plates. She winks at them again and Harry thanks her for their food before tucking right in. It’s heavenly, she thinks. 

“God this is good,” Niall says through a mouthful of her American style pancakes. 

Harry feels better as she eats. Everything feels a little calmer and a little easier. She can see that the tension has mostly gone from Zayn’s shoulders, too. And even Niall looks like she isn’t carrying as much weight on her mind. 

They’ve just finished eating when Zayn turns to face Niall a little more. 

“How come you didn’t wake me?” she asks.

Niall sets down her glass of juice. “I thought it was something I needed to do on my own,” she begins. “But when I got there, I realised that I didn’t want to go inside. And I decided that was it. I want nothing to do with them for the rest of my life.”

Harry’s gaze flicks between Niall and Zayn.

“They’re not my family anymore,” Niall continues. “And they haven’t been in a really long time. Like you said in Barcelona, you’re my family.” 

Zayn nods. She sucks her bottom lip between her teeth.

“I’m sorry for not bringing you with me,” Niall adds. “I knew that if I did, they’d say something about you, or our marriage, and I couldn’t handle that. I don’t want you put in that kind of situation.”

“I don’t want you to put yourself in that kind of situation, either,” Zayn says. “You scared me, Niall.”

“I’m sorry,” Niall says sincerely. “I really am.”

Zayn nods, accepting Niall’s apology. They hug and Harry lets out a breath she didn’t realise she was holding. 

“You’re my Miss Honey,” Niall says when they part.

“What?” Zayn asks, confused. 

Niall just grins. “You’re the family I’ll always choose. Bobby and Maura, and even Greg aren’t going to be in my life – in _our_ life – ever again.”

Zayn cups Niall’s cheek and gently kisses her. “If that’s what you want.”

“It is,” Niall says. “I don’t want anything to do with them anymore. I can’t go through this again. We have our own lives, and if they can’t accept that, then I let them go.”

Zayn still looks a little confused but she nods. Harry grins when they kiss again, a little longer this time. 

“I’ll go and pay,” Harry says, even though she knows they don’t hear her.

She reaches into her pocket only to realise that she didn’t bring her purse or her handbag with her. She winces and pulls out her phone. 

“What’s wrong, sweetheart?” Cait asks as Harry stands there dumbly.

“I don’t have any money on me,” Harry says apologetically. 

“Don’t fret,” Caitlin says. “Louis has an open tab here. I’ll just add it to that.”

Relief floods Harry yet again that morning. “Thank you _so much_ ,” she says.

Caitlin waves her off. “Think nothing of it. Just tell that fiancée of yours that we hope to see her soon.”

“I will,” Harry promises.

When she looks over, Niall and Zayn are heavily kissing. She bites her lips to keep from laughing and quickly ushers them out before things go any further.

~*~

The best thing about being tall, Harry decides, is that she can see over people a lot easier. She spots Kendall quickly and makes her way over to where she’s looking around for Harry.

“Kendall!” she calls out when she’s close enough. Kendall immediately looks around for her, but doesn’t see her until Harry is almost in front of her face.

“Hey,” she says. “Thanks for picking me up.”

“Of course,” Harry replies. They hug for a brief moment before Harry leads her through to the car park. 

“I didn’t realise London was so busy,” Kendall says as they’re slowly driving through traffic.

“Yeah, it gets a bit crazy sometimes,” she replies. “It’s why most of us take public transport – it’s easier and gets you places a lot faster.”

“Like in New York,” Kendal comments.

They make their way through and eventually pull into the underground car park of the building that Eleanor lives in. 

“So she has no idea?” Kendall asks as they ride the lift together to Eleanor’s penthouse flat.

“None whatsoever,” Harry replies with a grin. She jostles the boxes in her arms, struggling a little under their weight. 

“Cool.”

The ride doesn’t take that long, thankfully, and soon they’re stepping into Eleanor’s flat. It’s huge, Harry notices, upon stepping inside. A bit big for one person.

Harry hears the pitter-patter of dog paws as Bruce comes into view. 

“Hey, Brucie!” Harry exclaims. She sets down the boxes and kneels on the floor so she can give a proper hello to Bruce. She kisses the top of his head, scratching behind his ears. He immediately rolls over onto his back, exposing his belly to her. 

“He’s so cute,” Kendall says. She kneels next to Harry, rubbing at his tummy. 

“You’re such a good boy,” Harry says as she stands.

“I’m gonna take a shower,” Kendall says. “Do you mind?”

“Go for it,” Harry replies. “I’m going to start setting up.”

Before she starts, Harry refills Bruce’s bowl of water, which he happily drinks at. She opens cupboards until she finds the dry food and she half-fills his food bowl with it. He gives her a happy look before starting to dig in. It wasn’t purely selfless reasons to do that for Bruce, she needs him out of the way while she sets up. The last thing she wants is for Bruce to get hurt if she accidentally steps on his tail or some other unforgivable action.

Harry wanders through the flat, finding where Eleanor’s bedroom is. Kendall is in the ensuite bathroom, the shower running. Harry moves Kendall’s bag to the side and brings in the first box. She opens it with as much care as possible, seeing the loose rose petals inside. She grins as she leaves it opened on the bed to deal with later.

Because Harry is Harry, and she’s nothing if not a romantic, she purchased a small iPod and created a romantic playlist for Eleanor and Kendall to have playing in the background of their night. She connects it to Eleanor’s Bluetooth speakers and presses play. She hopes that it goes long enough for them. That was her only real worry about it.

She exits Eleanor’s room and opens the next box. That one has all of the stemmed roses in, so she puts it to the side. The next box has all of the food she’d prepared in it. She takes that one to the kitchen so she can sort through it. Most of the preparing she had done at home, things just need to be finished off.

She turns the oven on and puts the tray inside to cook the food. It shouldn’t take too long, just over half an hour, which gives Harry plenty of time to prepare the vegetables and the salad. She puts the wine she bought on the counter and gets to work. 

By the time Kendall is out of the shower, the half an hour is almost up. Harry checks the time and sees that Eleanor is due home any time now. She’s already prepared the roses, putting them in vases that Eleanor had in a cupboard, and has scattered the rose petals all over the bed, with a trail leading from the front door into the bedroom. She had tossed up between having the trail of rose petals leading to the kitchen because dinner would be first, but she went with the bedroom because it felt more romantic.

Harry dusts her hands on her apron (that she was glad she had brought with her), and opens the oven. She serves up the food on two plates and sets it on the table. She adjusts the cutlery and grins at her work, completely proud of herself. She snaps a few photos to show Louis later, and Kendall enters the kitchen as she’s slipping her phone back into her pocket.

“ _Wow_ ,” Kendall says. “You did all of this while I was in the shower?”

Harry nods, grinning. “It didn’t take much. Most of it I had prepared at home first. Just had to cook the food and set up. 

“I’ll just pour the wine so it can breathe a little, and when Eleanor gets here, you can just get started.”

The front door opens and Eleanor’s voice carries out. 

“Shit,” Harry hisses. She quickly, but efficiently, pours two glasses of wine and picks up the box from earlier. 

“Harry?” Eleanor asks upon seeing Harry exit the kitchen with the box in her hands. “What are you doing here?”

“Leaving!” Harry exclaims. She picks up the other two boxes and bends down to scratch Bruce behind his ears before pushing passed Eleanor to get to the door. 

Eleanor gives her a bewildered look.

“There’s a surprise for you in the kitchen,” Harry says. 

Eleanor frowns slightly, setting down her bag in the entry way before making her way to the kitchen. Harry opens the door to leave and she hears Eleanor’s exclaim of surprise at seeing Kendall. She grins to herself and closes the door firmly behind her. 

A part of her wishes that she could stay and enjoy their evening with them, but she knows that it would just be weird and creepy. And she has a night of her own to enjoy with Louis, Lottie and Félicité. 

The first thing Harry hears upon entering her and Louis’ flat is laughter. It makes her smile. She kicks off her shoes and sets her bag down, thankful that she had stopped downstairs to put the boxes in the recycling first. She makes her way through the entry hall towards the noise. She sees Félicité practically sitting on top of Louis on the sofa and Lottie taking photos.

“Charlotte Elizabeth!” Louis says as sternly as possible. “You had better not be taking photos.”

“Of course not,” Lottie lies.

Félicité laughs and tickles Louis until she’s squirming underneath her. Harry watches on with amusement. 

“Is this a private party or can anyone join?” she asks, announcing her arrival.

“Harry! My love! My beloved fiancée! Save me?”

Harry steps into the room properly. She kneels down next to the sofa and pats Louis’ arm. Right before tickling her mercilessly. Louis squeals and wriggles but Félicité’s hold on her is too tight.

“Alright, alright! I give,” Louis says breathlessly. She struggles to sit up, clutching her stomach as her breath heaves. “Betrayed by my own family. _And_ my own fiancée.”

“Love you, Lou,” Harry says. She gives her a smacking kiss and moves to sit next to her. 

Louis sniffs dramatically. “You’re all dead to me,” she says without heat. She gets up and wanders to the kitchen. Harry just grins after her.

“Love you too!” they all call after her. 

Harry giggles and turns to face Lottie and Félicité. “How was the drive?” she asks. 

“It was alright,” Félicité replies with a shrug. 

“Are you both looking forward to tomorrow?” 

Félicité and Lottie nod. “We can’t wait,” Lottie says. 

“Me too,” Harry says. “I was hoping that Louis would change her mind about joining us, but she’s got that interview with _The Guardian_ tomorrow morning, so she doesn’t want to be thinking about too much and getting distracted.”

“Makes sense,” Lottie says. “When’s her _Vanity Fair_ interview?”

“Friday night,” Harry replies. “We’re having her over for dinner. Elizabeth, I think her name is. I’ve been preparing the menu all week. We’re pretty excited, but I can tell that Louis is nervous. She doesn’t like to talk much about herself in public, but we agreed that this was really important for her, and for us to get it out there about the new LGBTQIA plus charities that we created.”

Félicité nods. “Mum is stoked. She’s going to buy every copy of _Vanity Fair_ at the newsagents that she can.”

Harry grins. “I’ll send her some from here in case she can’t get as many as she wants.”

“Don’t encourage her,” Lottie says with a fond roll of her eyes. “She’s really proud of Louis.”

“She should be,” Harry says. She knows her voice is laced with the love she feels for Louis. “After everything that happened in Amsterdam, I’m pretty convinced that Louis is literally an angel sent here to earth to do as much good as she can.”

“Thanks, love,” Louis says, re-entering the lounge room with a tray holding four cups of tea. “I’ve always thought you were an alien from outer space, so I guess that goes well.”

Harry gapes at her while Lottie and Félicité crack up laughing.

~*~

There’s more than butterflies in Harry’s stomach. Probably bats. Or owls. Something bigger than butterflies, that’s for sure.

“It’ll be fine once you’re out there,” Kendall says from next to Harry. She’s already got her hair and make-up done perfectly, but Harry’s hair is taking longer since she has so much of it.

“Easy for you to say,” Harry replies. “You do this as your job.”

“Doesn’t mean that I don’t still get nervous,” Kendall replies. “Lottie and Félicité seem to be fine.”

Harry uses the mirrors she’s sitting in front of her to look for Louis’ sisters. They’re sitting next to each other, laughing over something, but they both look happy and nerve-free, unlike Harry is at the moment. She closes her eyes and sighs. She can hear Niall’s laughter from the other side of the room and she smiles at the noise. She’s so glad that Niall and Zayn are doing the show, too. She had been afraid that after the other day Niall wouldn’t want to, but they’re here, and Harry is absolutely thrilled at it. 

“I just don’t want to fall over,” Harry admits, locking gazes with Kendall through the mirror. “I have enough trouble with that in my everyday life without adding a runway to it.”

“Then just think it’s your everyday life,” Kendall suggests. “Besides, you’re here for Sophia more than anything else. One of your best friends. She won’t be mad if you fall over.”

Harry bites her bottom lip. She’s pretty sure that Sophia wouldn’t be mad, but Harry would be disappointed in herself for messing anything up.

What she really needs right now is cuddles from Willow, but Liam has taken her hostage so Harry has to sulk on her own. 

“Done,” Harry’s hair stylist says. Her curls have been tamed into something artful, yet classy. She admires her reflection and smiles. 

“Thank you,” she says. The stylist gives her a tight smile and moves on to Kendall. 

“How’s it going?” Liam asks, appearing out of nowhere. Harry grins. She makes grabby hands for Willow, who is attached to Liam’s front in a carrier. She gets up and crosses the room over to them. 

“Good now that you’re here,” she says to Willow, who smiles at her. Harry’s heart melts. She takes Willow’s hand and kisses the back of it, making ‘nom’ noises just to get Willow to laugh. 

“Your hair looks great, Harry,” Liam says.

“Thank you,” Harry replies. “And thanks for finally bringing Willow in. She’s just what I needed.”

“Yeah, she wouldn’t settle before,” Liam says apologetically. “She’s teething, so she’s pretty grumpy these days.”

Harry pouts. “Are your teethies hurting you?” she asks Willow, stroking a finger down her bare foot. Willow kicks at her hand, bouncing up and down at the contact.

“They’re hurting her mummies, too,” Liam replies. “I’m exhausted. Sophia has been so busy with this show that I haven’t wanted her to get up and see to Willow at night. So I’ve been doing it all and I think my veins are about ninety percent coffee at the moment.”

“Louis and I are happy to take her one night if you need it?” Harry offers, looking up at Liam, but keeping her finger in Willow’s grasp.

“Mum already offered,” Liam says. “She’ll be here in a few to collect her. Sophia and I are going to have our first night alone since Willow was born.”

Harry waggles her eyebrows. “Got any plans?”

“Yes,” Liam says. “To get a solid eight hours uninterrupted sleep. I can’t bloody wait.”

Harry laughs. “I hope you get it, then.” 

“I’d better take Willow to say bye to Sophia,” Liam says. 

“Alright. Bye little one,” Harry says, turning her gaze to Willow. She kisses Willow’s warm cheek and then her hand again just to see her smile. “Have a good night, Li.” She kisses Liam’s cheek as well and Liam gives her a small smile before wandering off to find Sophia.

Harry’s turns to sit back next to Kendall, but she’s grabbed by one of the many assistants around the place and ushered over to the rack of clothing with her name pinned to the front. She’s handed her first outfit to put on. She takes off her robe that she’s in and pulls on the first outfit. She’s poked and prodded until the outfit is sitting completely perfectly on her body. 

She looks over to see Kendall getting the same treatment, a look of boredom on her face. She guesses it’s not hard to be bored with all of this when it’s what you do for work. 

“Haz!”

Harry looks up to see Louis looking around for her. “Hey,” she says, the butterflies in her stomach easing slightly in Louis’ presence. 

“Just wanted to wish you luck before you went out there,” Louis says softly. 

Harry practically melts. “Thank you,” she says. “I’m so glad you made it.”

“Of course I did,” Louis says, “I wouldn’t miss this for the world.” The kiss is soft and perfect and everything Harry needs right now. 

“How did the interview go?”

Louis nods. “Really well,” she says. “I’ll tell you about it later. Have fun.”

Harry smiles at Louis and watches her disappear. She’s then ordered to get in line and walk the runway after Kendall, who’s opening the show. She schools her expression into one of nonchalance and follows Kendall when she’s instructed to.

It’s harder than she thought to keep her gaze right ahead. Especially when she passes everyone she knows and love. Photographers are snapping what feels like thousands of photos as Harry walks, and all she can think of is ‘don’t fall over, don’t fall over, don’t fall over’. 

Thankfully she makes it backstage without any mishaps. She’s immediately instructed to take off her outfit, which she does as hastily as possible. She pulls on another one and re-joins the line again. 

Niall appears after a moment, quickly getting changed before stepping up behind Harry. 

“This is fun, isn’t it?”

Harry looks over her shoulder at Niall and grins. “It is. Mostly I’m trying not to fall over.”

Niall snorts and pats Harry’s shoulder. “You’re doing great.”

“You too.”

Harry’s waved onto the runway again and she keeps looking right ahead. The temptation to look out into the audience is a great one. She stops when she’s supposed to, posing this way and that for the photographers to get the photos that they need, before she’s turning around again.

The entire show goes off without a hitch. Harry sinks into her dressing room chair for a few brief moments, utterly relieved. 

“See, you didn’t fall over!” Kendall says, throwing her arms around Harry in a hug. 

Harry grins into her shoulder. “I’m still unsure how that happened.”

She gets up to take her outfit off and put her robe back on. As she’s securing it around her body, Sophia steps into the dressing room and everyone applauds. Harry sticks her fingers in her mouth and whistles, causing Sophia to duck her head, blushing.

“That was fantastic,” she begins. “Thank you to every single one of you for doing this. I know so many of you have worked tirelessly on making this line happen, and I cannot thank you enough.”

Everyone applauds and Sophia practically glows in it.

“I wanted to give a special thank you to Kendall Jenner for flying out here especially,” Sophia continues. Everyone claps and Kendall beams. “But I also wanted to give thanks to my incredible wife for taking over _all_ mummy duties with our precious baby girl while I worked on this. I love you so much, Liam. Without you, none of this would have been possible.” 

Liam blushes furiously as Sophia takes her hand and kisses her in front of everyone. Harry is positive that she claps the loudest.

“Well done, love,” Louis says, appearing out of nowhere. She kisses Harry soundly on the lips and Harry pulls back, grinning from ear to ear. “I’m so proud of you.”

“Thank you,” Harry says, hugging Louis close. 

Lottie and Félicité make their way over and Louis gives them big hugs as well. She can’t believe that it’s done. That Sophia now officially has launched her first clothing line into the world. She can’t wait to see what the world thinks of her clothes, and hopes that people love them as much as she does.

~*~

A breathy sigh escapes Harry’s lips. She arches into Louis’ touch, her body positively thrumming with desire. Her legs are wrapped around Louis’ back, keeping her as close as possible as Louis slowly thrusts into her.

It’s been a long and busy week and Harry has wanted this since the night of the fashion show. Finally being able to have Louis in her arms, making love to her has been a long time coming.

“Fuck!” she exclaims. “Right there, Lou.” 

Louis keeps the angle and pressure up, the dildo sliding against Harry’s g-spot with every thrust. She clings to Louis’ back, her fingers digging in a little tighter than is probably necessary. Her orgasm washes over her body after the next few thrusts, leaving Harry shaking all over. Louis pulls out and slides between Harry’s legs, licking her clean. She sighs, rutting down into Louis’ expert mouth. 

Louis reaches up to cup one of Harry’s breasts in her hand, tugging at her nipple. Harry moans loudly at the sensation. She grips Louis’ head between her legs and ruts against her face, orgasming again. Her entire body sags against the bed, completely spent. 

Sweat clings to her skin and Harry huffs out a laugh as she pushes her hair away from her damp forehead. 

“That was _amazing_ ,” Harry says as Louis moves to lie next to her. 

Louis grins, running a finger down the centre of Harry’s chest. Harry’s skin tingles at the touch. 

“Do I have enough time to eat you out again?” Harry asks.

Louis leans over and looks at her digital clock. “Yeah, we’ve got time.”

“Let me go check on dinner, first,” Harry says. She gets up and wanders through the house, completely naked. She peers into the oven, glad to see their dinner cooking nicely. She grins and pats the side of the oven before heading back to the bedroom. Which is empty. She frowns but then the shower turns on and she makes her way into the bathroom.

“I thought I was going to eat you out?”

“I figured you could just finger me in here,” Louis says over the noise of the water. “We can multitask!” 

Harry rolls her eyes but steps into the shower behind Louis. She presses herself up against Louis’ damp back and slides her hands over Louis’ stomach, up to her breasts. She cups them both in her hands, enjoying their weight. 

She slides one hand back down Louis’ stomach, stroking oh so slowly. Louis’ head tips back against Harry’s shoulder as she parts Louis’ folds. She circles Louis’ clit once causing Louis to shudder in her arms. She grins and peppers kisses down Louis’ neck, nipping at her shoulder. She’s careful not to leave any visible marks, they are having a guest over for dinner, after all. 

“There, princess,” Louis whispers, her eyes still closed. Harry keeps stroking Louis’ clit with the same speed and pressure, enjoying the way Louis shakes in her arms. 

The noises that fall from Louis’ lips as she orgasms are music to Harry’s ears. She keeps a firm hold on Louis so she doesn’t slip and fall. Louis sags against her after a few long moments and Harry kisses her neck, letting her lips linger on the spot.

“Thank you, love,” Louis says, turning in Harry’s arms. She kisses Harry hotly, sliding her tongue against Harry’s own. Harry moans into the kiss, pressing as close to Louis as she can.

The water cascades over them, making Harry feel pleasantly warm.

“I was thinking,” Louis says as she washes Harry’s back. “Maybe you’d like to wear your princess plug tonight?”

Harry perks up. Louis hands trail down her back to cup her arse. She parts Harry’s cheeks and runs her middle finger down until it rests against Harry’s entrance.

“ _Yes_ ,” she breathes, her nipples hardening at the contact. “It’s been so long.”

Louis presses a kiss to her shoulder. “Yes, it has. Let’s get you nice and clean then.”

Harry closes her eyes, her breath stuttering as Louis works a finger inside of her. She braces herself against the slick tiles, trying to hold on. She pants heavily, feeling herself grow wetter the more Louis wiggles her finger inside of Harry.

“C’mon, let’s get out of here,” Louis says after she removes her finger. 

On slightly shaky legs, Harry follows Louis out of the shower. She lets herself be wrapped up in her favourite fluffy towel and gives Louis a dopey smile when Louis kisses her. 

They make their way into the bedroom and Harry gets up onto the bed on all fours, her arse on display. 

She lets out a loud moan when Louis spanks her arse once before kissing the same cheek she spanked. She drops her head, letting it hang between her arms. The sound of the lubricant opening fills the otherwise quiet room. A few seconds later, Louis’ finger is pressing back into Harry, wriggling slightly. All too soon, the digit is removed, causing Harry to whimper at the loss.

“You’re doing great, princess,” Louis praises. Harry’s heart expands at the compliment.

A few moments later, the tip of her princess plug is nudging at her entrance. Her body willingly accepts it and Harry feels the base pressing _just so_ against the outside. She reaches behind herself and presses it once, moaning at the pressure.

“If we get through tonight without incident, I’ll do _whatever_ you want afterwards.”

Harry perks up. She shifts, moving off her knees. She sits on the edge of the bed, Louis between her legs. “Will you go without wearing knickers during dinner?”

Louis nods. She kisses Harry hotly, pushing Harry back on the bed and climbing on top of her. It would be all too easy to wrap her legs around Louis’ body and keep her close until they’re both too turned on to care, but she wants to experiment later.

“I love you so much,” Harry says, staring up at Louis. She gently cups Louis’ face in her hands and kisses her tenderly.

Louis gives her a look that is filled with love and Harry’s ribcage feels too small for her body. “I love you too.”

They kiss again once before separating. 

True to her word, Louis pulls on her dress, sans knickers, and Harry grins. She’s absolutely insatiable. Harry steps into her own dress, also without knickers on and she steps into Louis’ arms, unable to keep away for too long.

The doorbell rings, breaking their spell. 

“That’ll be Elizabeth from _Vanity Fair_ ,” Louis says against Harry’s lips. 

“Let’s go do the interview of a lifetime,” Harry replies. She gives Louis one last kiss before leading her from the room. They answer the door together, greeting their guest with big smiles. 

Harry catches Louis’ gaze as the door closes, feeling incredibly naughty and even sexier knowing that they’re sharing a secret that no one else will ever know.

~*~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi again. If you've got this far, I hope you enjoyed this part. ♥  
> Please leave me a comment if you liked it. I love comments so very much a lot. ♥
> 
>  
> 
> and that's it for this part! finally, hey? i love this fic so much, and if you liked it too, please let me know. comments and kudos mean so very much a lot to me. ♥
> 
>  
> 
> rebloggable post on my [tumblr](http://star55.tumblr.com/post/182858286741)

**Author's Note:**

> Note: this specific fic is _over_ 100k, so it will be posted in 6 parts - split up between the 6 POV breaks.  
> Also, in case you don't follow my pointless updates on my tumblr - this series has completely finished being written. There are 20 parts in total, and the word count (including this part) is upwards of 170k
> 
> Please be kind.
> 
> rebloggable post on my [tumblr](http://star55.tumblr.com/post/181392845361)


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